Euphilotes battoides

Euphilotes battoides
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Lycaenidae
Genus:	Euphilotes
Species:	E. battoides
Binomial name
Euphilotes battoides (Behr, 1867) [1]
Synonyms
Rusticus battoides Philotes battoides Euphilotes glaucon Rusticus glaucon Philotes glaucon

Euphilotes battoides, the square-spotted blue or buckwheat blue, is a species of butterfly of the family Lycaenidae.

Distribution

It is found in western North America from California south to Baja California Norte and then west to southern Colorado and New Mexico. ^[2] This species may also occur in Oregon and Washington, but more study is needed to verify this. ^{[3] [4]}

The wingspan is 16–17 mm. Adults are on wing from mid April to August in one generation per year. They feed on the flower nectar of various plants, but mostly Eriogonum species.

Subspecies

• E. b. battoides(Behr, 1867) (California)
• E. b. comstocki(Shields, 1975)
• E. b. centralis(Barnes & McDunnough, 1917) (southern Colorado to northern New Mexico)
• E. b. argocyanea(Pratt and J. Emmel, 1998)
• E. b. fusimaculata(Pratt and J. Emmel, 1998)
• E. b. mazourka(Pratt and J. Emmel, 1998)
• E. b. panamintensis(Pratt and J. Emmel, 1998)
• E. b. vernalis(Pratt and J. Emmel, 1998)

Invalid Subspecies

• E. b. allyni (Shields, 1975). The El Segundo blue was originally thought to be a subspecies, but recent authorities consider it as a distinct, valid species (Euphilotes allyni). ^{[5] [6]}
• E. b. bernardino(Barnes & McDunnough, 1916) – Bernardino Square-spotted Blue
• E. b. centralis(Barnes & McDunnough, 1917)
• E. b. glaucon(Edwards, 1871) (British Columbia to northeastern California and southern Idaho)
• E. b. intermedia(Barnes & McDunnough, 1917)
• E. b. baueri(Shields, 1975)
• E. b. ellisi(Shields, 1975)

References

1. Euphilotes at Markku Savela's website on Lepidoptera
2. Butterflies and Moths of North America
3. Euphilotes battoides Butterflies of America website
4. Lepidoptera of North America 6, Butterflies of Oregon, Their Taxonomy Distribution and Biology, Andrew J. Warren
5. Davenport, K. 2018. Lepidoptera of North America 15. Butterflies of southern California in 2018: updating Emmel and Emmel's 1973 Butterflies of southern California. Contributions of the C.P. Gillette Museum of Arthropod Diversity Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado. 175 pp.
6. Rubinoff, D., T. Longcore, J.R. Dupuis, and K.H. Osborne. 2021. Genomic data support the elevation of the federally listed El Segundo Blue (Euphilotes bernardino/battoides allyni) to species status. Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 75(2): 161-164.