Palatka Skipper
Euphyes pilatka
Palatka Skipper is uncommon in the Coastal Counties. For years, it was known only from one specimen taken in Screven County on May 25, 1946 by Otto Buchholtz. (Harris, The Butterflies of Georgia, 1972.) It is closely tied to its sole hostplant, swamp sawgrass (Cladium jamaicense), a tall grass with razor-sharp leaves that grows along our major coastal rivers including the Savannah River, the Altamaha River, the Satilla River, and the St. Mary’s River. Sawgrass grows in brackish marshes that infrequently get saltwater influx or that get low salinity levels a couple of times daily at high tide when freshwater river outflows mix just a bit with saltwater tidal inflows (Joel McNeal, 2008). The female Palatka Skipper that I found in Camden County on September 19, 2009 was the first recorded since 1946, so far as I know. Subsequent study has shown that the species can be fairly numerous at times at nectar sites near swamp sawgrass, often nectaring on Spanish needle (Bidens pilosa), pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata), Brazilian vervain (Verbena brasiliensis) or marsh fleabane (Pluchea odorata). There are two broods, mid-May to early June and mid-September to early October. Early Date: May 25 (Screven County); Late Date: September 22 (Camden County). Conservation status: Currently secure in restricted range in coastal counties, but sea level rise caused by global warming could negatively affect its habitat.
