Please note: The Yellow Palm Dart (Cephrenes trichopepla) has recently been identified in Sri Lanka. It is very similar in the field to the Pale Palm Dart; you need to look at the specimens in the hand in order to identify them properly. Therefore, the following photos may or may not be the Pale Palm Dart! The following description is correct but the life history may not be. Further studies are needed.

Male Pale Palm Dart

Description
Wingspan 32-38mm. A medium sized black and orange-yellow skipper. The undersides on both wings are a pale orange-yellow with a few darker orange quadrate markings that correspond to the orange-yellow markings of the upper side. 

The male upper side forewing has a well defined sex brand along the center between the orange markings. On the forewing above, the veins towards the outer margin beyond the discal band of spots are orange in colour, more so in the male than in the female. The females are similar in size and appearance to the males but have much smaller orange markings and broader termenal margins on both wings.. 

Similar species
Dark Palm Dart, Yellow Palm Dart

Status, distribution and habitat
It is widely distributed but its home base is probably in the intermediate zone where coconut grows extensively, especially young coconut plantations with an abundance of nectaring plants. Wide open spaces interspersed with a few trees are its preferred habitat. It is somewhat seasonal with a major population peak during the north east monsoon and a minor one during the south west monsoon.

Habits
It flies very fast and but often settles down on flowers of herbs and shrubs to nectar when it can be observed very closely. The exceptionally long proboscis enables this butterfly to feed on flowers with deep corolla tubes  Like many other skippers it holds its fore wings half open while and its hind wings horizontal, either during basking or nectaring. It may be seen day after day in the same locality, often in the company of species of Potanthus. The males hill top, the highest point in a coconut land would do just fine. 

Early stages
The eggs are laid on the young leaves of coconut. Although fronds of very young plants with leaflets still attached to each other are used for egg laying, those that are separated, but still quite young (two to five years old) are preferred. The eggs are dome shaped, red in colour and beautifully sculptured. The larva on emergence builds a nest by sewing up the the two sides of a leaflet and feeds from within leaving a characteristic pattern of feeding that may be distinguished easily. 

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