little wood satyr

Little wood satyr is a medium-sized butterfly with rounded wings and a slow, bouncy flight.

The upper wing surface is light brown to medium brown. All individuals have dark eyespots on the upper and lower sides of both wings. The eyespots are rimmed with yellow and most have two metallic gray “pupils”. Both males and females have two eyespots on the upperside of the forewing. The male has one or two large eyespots on the hindwing. The female has two large eyespots on the hindwing and may also have an additional, smaller spot between the lower eyespot and the margin.

The lower wing surface is lighter than the upper surface. Both males and females have two large, prominent eyespots and a few smaller, less prominent spots on each wing. There are two distinct, parallel, relatively straight, dark brown stripes that cross both wings.

1⅝″ to 1⅞″ wingspan

Northern pearly eye (Lethe anthedon) is larger, with a wingspan up to 2⅝″. It has 4 spots on the upper forewing and 5 on the upper hindwing, none of which have white “pupils”. The line nearest to the center of the lower hindwing is jagged, not straight.

Edges between grassland and woodland

One brood, late May to early August.

The female lays eggs throughout her lifetime in the spring and summer. The eggs are placed singly on or near grass plants. Larvae feed at night. The offspring overwinter in leaf litter, pupate in the spring, and emerge as adults in late May. There is a second, smaller emergence of adults three weeks after the first.

Orchard grass (Dactylis glomerata ssp. glomerata), Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis ssp. pratensis), and possibly other grasses.

Tree sap, aphid honeydew, fluids from decaying mushrooms, and, occasionally, flower nectar.

Sources

7, 21, 27, 29, 30, 71, 75, 82, 83.

Biodiversity occurrence data published by: Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas (accessed through the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Portal, bellatlas.umn.edu, 7/12/2025).

Common to abundant, widespread

Little Wood Satyr (Megisto cymela)
Andree Reno Sanborn

Megisto cymela (Little Wood Satyr)
Allen Chartier

Little Wood Satyr butterfly
Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren

Little Wood Satyr Butterfly (Nymphalidae: Megisto cymela) Sunning
Carl Barrentine

Little Wood Satyr (Nymphalidae: Megisto cymela) on Leaf
Carl Barrentine

Little Wood-Satyr
Kim Smith