About Pyrgus sidae (Esper, 1784)
Pyrgus sidae, commonly known as the yellow-banded skipper, is a species of skipper butterfly in the family Hesperiidae. Its range extends from the Iberian Peninsula (where it only occurs in an isolated population in the Sierra de Gredos) through southern and eastern Europe, including southeast France, the northwestern coastal areas of central Italy, Istria (covering Slovenia and Croatia), and the Balkan Peninsula. It continues across Turkey and Transcaucasia to Iran and Afghanistan. East of the Southern Ural Mountains, its range extends north to northwest Kazakhstan and the western part of the Tien Shan. Most Pyrgus species are typically hard to distinguish from one another in the field, but P. sidae is a clear exception. It is the largest member of the genus Pyrgus found in Europe, with a wingspan measuring 32–38 mm. It can be immediately identified by two bold, black-edged yellow bands on the underside of its hindwings. Its dark brown upper forewings are also distinctly marked with numerous large white spots. A. Seitz provides the following description: "Underside of hindwing with two light orange-red bands which are bordered with black, extend to vein 7 and terminate with a black spot in interspace 8. The white spots on the upperside of the forewing very small; the two spots in interspaces 2 and 8 smaller than all the others". Adult yellow-banded skippers fly in June and July. The food plant for its larvae is Abutilon avicennae.
