Orange Dart

Description:

This small butterfly of the Hesperiidae family has a wingspan of about 20 mm. Forewing is bright orange with a thick black outer edge and a parallel black stripe; hindwing is black with a thick orange band. It is paler underneath.

Habitat:

Spotted in a meadow in the middle of mixed eucalypt/kunzea forest. Distribution: coastal eastern Queensland and New South Wales. Different subspecies in the Northern Territory. Also Moluccas to New Guinea and Solomon Islands.

Notes:

Note: ID is provisional as there are several species of Suniana, Ocybasdites and Taractrocera which can be difficult to distinguish. Note the proboscis on the second shot.