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I was on the Springdale Farm Reserve near Usk, South East Wales, this afternoon. There were plenty of Small Skippers but two stood out. Both were on the higher part of the south west facing meadow amongst the long grasses and on closer inspection I observed inky black antenna tips rather than the golden brown one associates with Small Skippers.

The Essex Skipper is at the limit of its current range in Gwent, but nonetheless the two individuals I saw immediately struck me as being Essex rather than Small Skipper.

The best photo I could muster with my digital was this one, so, can anyone with a better appreciation of the subtle differences between these two species confirm that what I saw were Essex, rather than Small, Skippers?

That's an Essex Skipper - the black undersides to the antennae make it certain. Here's a Small one for contrast.

Dave

Thanks, millerd. I was pretty certain as I've been obsessive about this for a few weeks now.

The antennae were distinctly black, whereas, like you have pointed out, Small Skippers' are golden brown.

I also noticed that the blackish markings at the tops of the forewings/hindwings were a little more pronounced in the two individuals I observed.

It was also worth noting that no Small Skippers were seen at the top of the south facing meadow where the two individuals I identified as 'Lineola' were observed.

Are Essex Skippers more at home in grassland with sparse nectar-bearing plants? All the Small Skippers were concentrated at lower levels where the knapweed and Bird's Foot Trefoil were growing.

David's skipper looks like a male, in which case separation is trivial from the upperside and it is not necessary to peer round under the antennae. Antennae can be misleading, as they can be heavily melanic in both species and the orange can be very dull sometimes in small skipper. But a glance at the sex brand confirms the identity.

Guy

EDIT

These two pictures illustrate another useful difference between the two species. In small skipper, the greyish apical area of the underside forewing contrasts with and is clearly demarcated from the underside colour of the rest of the wing. In Essex skipper the contrast is less and the demarcation diffuse.

padfield wrote:David's skipper looks like a male, in which case separation is trivial from the upperside and it is not necessary to peer round under the antennae. Antennae can be misleading, as they can be heavily melanic in both species and the orange can be very dull sometimes in small skipper. But a glance at the sex brand confirms the identity.

Guy

EDIT

These two pictures illustrate another useful difference between the two species. In small skipper, the greyish apical area of the underside forewing contrasts with and is clearly demarcated from the underside colour of the rest of the wing. In Essex skipper the contrast is less and the demarcation diffuse.

Guy

Please could you recap the differences in the sex brand of the Essex and Small Skipper - I have a few Small Skipper photos from the weekend I was checking and a lot of them aren't from angles where the underside of the antenna are visible.

Thanks in advance

Bill

Hi Bill,

The sex brand in small skipper is long and cuts down across a vein, giving it a curved appearance. In Essex skipper it is short and straight, though frequently there is another bit below the vein, disjoint from the main brand.


Essex


Small - male below, female above

Guy

padfield wrote:Hi Bill,

The sex brand in small skipper is long and cuts down across a vein, giving it a curved appearance. In Essex skipper it is short and straight, though frequently there is another bit below the vein, disjoint from the main brand.

Guy

Thanks Guy, much appreciated.

Bill

Yes, thanks Guy, although your advice runs contrary to that of Jeremy Thomas in his recent 'Butterflies of Britain & Ireland' publication.

In this, the author espouses his view that antennal colouring is the bona fide means of identification, supporting his theory by adding that differences in the sex line of the male are 'slight and variable'.

I saw both butterflies at close quarters and, having studied over a hundred during the last few weeks, immediately observed a distinct difference in the two seen at Springdale that I had never witnessed before.

The antennal undersides were truly black - there was absolutely no doubt. I could accept that maybe one could have been an extreme aberration, but two in the same 200m square field within an hour of each other?

I will certainly scrutinise males for the angle of their sex brands in future but will continue to also pay attention to their antennae. I intend to pay another visit to this site within the next couple of weeks and will make this the main purpose of that visit.

Jeremy Thomas trumps Guy Padfield, so if in doubt, take his word for it! I would say, though, that the sex brand has been clear and decisive in every male of these two species I've ever seen. It is always in accordance with the shading under the wings and almost always confirmed by the antennae, though I have to say I don't bother looking at these in males much of the time. And melanic antennae, which occur relatively frequently, do not look anything like the book pictures.

If you rely on antennae, the important thing in my opinion is NOT to try for the photograph but to look at them carefully from different angles. These two species are really easy in the field but often not so easy in photographs.

Guy

padfield wrote:I would say, though, that the sex brand has been clear and decisive in every male of these two species I've ever seen.

Same here. The sex brand on an Essex is a) parallel with the leading edge of the forewing and b) a lot shorter than the brand found on a Small (which is also angled), as the name "lineola", derived from "linea" (short line) implies.

Cheers,

- Pete

Thanks so much to both of you.

I'm still a relative novice so I'll rely on a second round of intensive study next week, but if after scrutinising both antennae AND sex brands and remaining convinced, I'll contact the county recorder as to my knowledge the presence of Essex Skippers on this site could constitute an extension to their western range.

padfield wrote:And melanic antennae, which occur relatively frequently, do not look anything like the book pictures.

Guy

Is this what you mean by melanic antennae?

Thanks

Bill

I have the impression that Essex although widespread is far more local and colonial with it being inexplicably absent from seemingly ideal habitats. Yet in a similar habitat a couple of miles away, Essex can outnumber Small.

This surely is Essex?

Jack

Bill S wrote: Is this what you mean by melanic antennae?

Yes - and though that one is small skipper, I have seen very similar colouration on Essex (on the upperside). Of course, the antennae are key, and perhaps definitive, but they are by no means the only indicator and sometimes other things are easier.

Jack's is a classic Essex skipper.

Guy

padfield wrote:

Bill S wrote: Is this what you mean by melanic antennae?

Yes - and though that one is small skipper, I have seen very similar colouration on Essex (on the upperside). Of course, the antennae are key, and perhaps definitive, but they are by no means the only indicator and sometimes other things are easier.

Jack's is a classic Essex skipper.

Guy

Thanks Guy, is it the hint of an orange underside on the left antenna that ID that example as a small skipper?

Bill

I visited Springdale Farm Reserve today, with a view to try to find some Essex Skippers, and encountered 3 individuals. I searched amongst the long grasses on the higher part of the south west facing meadow, and found 1 male and 2 females. I only had brief views of the male, but was able to see the black antenna tips, and the sex brand conformed with the descriptions contained in this thread. One of the females presented the best opportunity for close examination and I was able to take quite a few photos (see below).

Like David, I encountered no Small Skippers at the top of the south facing meadow, although they were numerous at the bottom of the slope, where the knapweed was more plentiful. I searched the area for 2 to 3 hours and could only find the 3 Essex Skippers mentioned (presumably in roughly the same area that David found them), but I didn't check all the fields and some of them offered a similar habitat.

Please excuse the quality of my photos in comparison with those above; I've set myself a challenge to photograph as many species as possible using my phone camera!

Jon

Willing to be corrected (I'm here to learn as much as anyone else!) - but these all look like Small Skipper to me. The Essex Skippers I've seen haven't had an extensive dark area on the tip of the antenna, but a very pronounced area, right on the tip, that looks like the antennae have been dipped in a tin of paint. In particular, the diagnostic is that it is the underside of the tip of the antenna that is the distinguishing feature.

Be interested to hear what others think.

Cheers,

- Pete

Got this one as well, again from the same individual- the underside was as black as black!

Pete Eeles wrote:Willing to be corrected

I feel suitably admonished

Thx Jonathan - deffo Essex!

Cheers,

- Pete

I see what you mean by "looks like the antennae have been dipped in a tin of paint", Peter - this certainly seems to be true of the males but, interestingly, the effect doesn't seem as marked in females; images in the gallery on this site and on Steve Cheshire's site seem to bear this out, but I would be curious to know whether this applies to all females.

Cheers,

Jon