Field Skipper

The sachem's wingspan is 35–41 mm (1+3⁄8–1+5⁄8 in). The sexes are dissimilar but both have elongated wings. The uppersides of the male forewing are orange bordered with brown and have a large four sided black stigma. The color of the uppersides of the female wings are dark brown with golden spots in the center but are highly variable, light to very dark. The uppersides of the female forewing have a black median spot and several semi-transparent spots. Females can always be identified by the square white transparent spot at the end of the forewing cell. Underside of wings on both sexes are variable but the female hindwing is brown with light colored four-sided spots. The sachem is often mistaken for other skipper butterflies in the genus Hesperia. In 2022, the population in the eastern part of the continent was designated a separate species, A. huron, the huron sachem.

Atalopedes campestris can be found in open, disturbed areas such as roadsides, lawns, pastures, parks, oil fields, and landfills. It had been observed that the sachem expanded its range northward rapidly during the beginning of the 21st century. A study by Crozier shows that this expansion is due to the winter warming trend of climate change rather than evolution of cold tolerance for this species.