About Pyrgus ruralis (Boisduval, 1852)
Pyrgus ruralis, commonly called the two-banded checkered skipper, is a species of skipper butterfly that belongs to the family Hesperiidae. This species is distributed from southern British Columbia and the southwestern Alberta Rocky Mountains, with populations extending south to central California, Nevada, Utah, and Colorado. An endangered subspecies of Pyrgus ruralis, subspecies lagunae, has a single population in the mountains east of San Diego in southern California. This endangered subspecies is commonly known as the Laguna Mountains skipper. The two-banded checkered skipper has a wingspan ranging from 25 to 29 mm. It produces one generation per year, with adults active from April to July. The species' larvae feed on herbaceous plants of the rose family Rosaceae. Confirmed host plants for larvae include Potentilla drummondii, Horkelia fusca, Horkelia tenuiloba, and Horkelia bolanderi clevelandii. Adult two-banded checkered skippers feed on flower nectar.
