Helicta Satyr (Neonympha helicta)
Distribution, abundance, flight period, and map information provided by Notes on the Butterflies of North Carolina.
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Helicta Satyr (Neonympha helicta) |
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| DISTRIBUTION in North Carolina: Apparently the northern half, and the inner portion, of the Coastal Plain, as well as the lower Piedmont. The Neonympha species found in the southeastern Coastal Plain is believed to be solely N. areolatus (strict sense). As N. helicta is a recently described species (1999), split off from N. areolatus [Georgia Satyr], there is much to be learned about the overlap of the two species, though it is clear that, at least in NC, Helicta Satyr is the more inland species and likely the only one to occur in the Piedmont. Gatrelle (1999) mentions that both species have been taken in Hoke County, in the Sandhills region (and in Aiken County, SC, also in the Sandhills region). Helicta ranges north to VA and NJ; Georgia (strict sense) is believed to be absent north of NC. |
| ABUNDANCE in North Carolina: Rare to very locally uncommon in the sandhills; and very rare in the Piedmont and elsewhere in the upper Coastal Plain, though some numbers have recently been found in a powerline clearing in the Coastal Plain portion of Harnett County. This species is highly threatened in the state, and it likely has disappeared from most of the former Piedmont range. |
| FLIGHT PERIOD in North Carolina: Two broods, probably similar to those of the Georgia Satyr, though probably finishing early in fall (and not into October). Likely broods are late May to mid- or late June, and mid-August into perhaps mid-September. |
Distribution, abundance, flight period, and map information provided by Notes on the Butterflies of North Carolina. |