Polites rhesus

Polites rhesus, the Rhesus skipper or plains gray skipper,^[1] is a butterfly in the family Hesperiidae. It is found in North America from Texas to North Dakota, as far north, but infrequently, as Saskatchewan and Alberta.^[2]

Rhesus skipper
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Hesperiidae
Genus:	Polites
Species:	P. rhesus
Binomial name
Polites rhesus (W.H. Edwards, 1876)
Synonyms
Pamphila rhesus Edwards, 1878 Hesperia axius Plötz, 1883 Chaerephon rhesus Godman & Salvin, [1900] Erynnis rhesus Dyar, 1903, Bull. U.S. natn. Mus., 52: 50 Yvretta rhesus

The wingspan is 25–30 mm.^[2]

There is one generation in May and June.^[2] Its habitats include short-grass and mixed grass prairie.^[3]

The larvae feed on grasses, including blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis).^[2] Adults feed on nectar from flowers including Drummond's milkvetch (Astragalus drummondii).^[3]