Wing span: 4.5-5.5 cm.

Flight time: Multiple-brooded, flying throughout the growing season. It is most often encountered from late May to mid July.

Status: Common breeding resident.

Distinguishing features: The Silver Spotted skippers large size, dark brown color, medial gold band on the upper and lower fore wing, and its large silver band on the lower hind wing make it easy to identify.

Distribution and habitat: Map, 5. Found throughout the state in a wide variety of wooded habitats. It was first reported in Iowa from Crawford and Denison counties in 1869.

Natural History: The Silver-spotted Skipper is an extremely strong flyer. It is very pugnacious and will even dart at small birds. While, Opler and Krizek (1984) report that its larvae consume a wide variety of legumes, no favored host plants have been recorded in Iowa. It is likely that it eats a wide variety of common woodland legumes, such as Black Locust (Robinia pseudo-acacia), Honey Locust (Gleditsia triacanthos), Hog Peanut (Amphicarpa bracetata) and Tick-trefoils (Desmodium spp.).