| Silvery blue | |
|---|---|
 | |
| G. l. couperi, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Lycaenidae |
| Genus: | Glaucopsyche |
| Species: | G. lygdamus |
| Binomial name | |
| Glaucopsyche lygdamus (Edward Doubleday, 1841) | |
| Subspecies | |
See text | |
Glaucopsyche lygdamus, the silvery blue, is a small butterfly native to North America.
Its upperside is a light blue in males and a dull grayish blue in females. The underside is gray with a single row of round spots of differing sizes depending upon the region.
G. lygdamus is found over much of the western United States and most of Canada extending north excepting most of Nunavut and the high Arctic islands. Wingspan is from 18 to 28 mm. [2] [3] It occurs in a variety of habitats including alpine meadows, shale barrens, dunes, and wooded areas. [4] It feeds on Lupinus plants. [5]
The extinct Xerces blue (Glaucopsyche xerces) was once thought to be a subspecies of the silvery blue.
Listed alphabetically: [6]
The Xerces blue is a recently extinct species of butterfly in the gossamer-winged butterfly family, Lycaenidae. The species lived in coastal sand dunes of the Sunset District of the San Francisco Peninsula in California. The Xerces blue is believed to be the first American butterfly species to become extinct as a result of loss of habitat caused by urban development. The last Xerces blue was seen in 1941 or 1943 on land that is now part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.
The Palos Verdes blue is a small endangered butterfly native to the Palos Verdes Peninsula in southwest Los Angeles County, California, United States. As its distribution has been proven to be limited to one single site it has one of the best claims to being the world's rarest butterfly.
Lycaenidae is the second-largest family of butterflies, with over 6,000 species worldwide, whose members are also called gossamer-winged butterflies. They constitute about 30% of the known butterfly species.
Lycaena phlaeas, the small copper, American copper, or common copper, is a butterfly of the Lycaenids or gossamer-winged butterfly family. According to Guppy and Shepard (2001), its specific name phlaeas is said to be derived either from the Greek φλέγω (phlégo), "to burn up", or from the Latin floreo, "to flourish".
The short-tailed blue or tailed Cupid is a butterfly that forms part of the family Lycaenidae. It is found from Europe to Japan and in India.
The eastern tailed-blue or eastern tailed blue, also known as Everes comyntas, is a common butterfly of eastern North America. It is a small butterfly that is distinguished from other blues in its range by the small thin tail.
Glaucopsyche, commonly called blues, is a Holarctic genus of butterfly in the family Lycaenidae, found mainly in Palearctic Asia. For other species called "blues" see subfamily Polyommatinae and genus Plebejus.
Glaucopsyche alexis, the green-underside blue, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in the Palearctic.
Aricia nicias, the silvery argus, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in the Alps, Pyrenees and from Scandinavia ranging to Siberia and the north of Mongolia.
Satyrium titus, the coral hairstreak, is a North American butterfly in the family Lycaenidae.
Cupido alcetas, the Provençal short-tailed blue, is a small butterfly that belongs to the family Lycaenidae.
Callophrys henrici, the Henry's elfin or woodland elfin, is a North American butterfly in the family Lycaenidae. In Canada it is found from southern Manitoba to southern Nova Scotia. It has two main groups of populations in the United States; the first is found along the Atlantic Coast and uses various hollies (Ilex) as host plants; and the second is found mainly in the north and the Appalachians where they use redbud as a host plant. Henry's elfin is increasing in New England because of an introduced buckthorn it now uses as a host plant. It is listed as a species of special concern in the US state of Connecticut.
Agriades glandon, the Arctic blue or Glandon blue, is a species of butterfly in the family Lycaenidae. It in found in Eurasia and North America.
Icaricia icarioides, or Boisduval's blue, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae found in North America. This butterfly has 25 recognized subspecies.
Hesperopsis libya, the Mojave sootywing, Mohave sootywing, Great Basin sootywing or Lena sooty wing, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in North America from eastern Oregon east to Montana and south to southern California, Arizona, and north-western Mexico including Baja California. Its habitats include alkalai flats, sagebrush desert, desert hills, shale barrens, watercourses, and ravines.
Satyrium liparops, the striped hairstreak, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae described by John Eatton Le Conte in 1833. It is found in North America, from the Rocky Mountains south from southern Canada to Colorado, east to Maine and south to Florida.
Media related to Glaucopsyche lygdamus at Wikimedia Commons