Family:Lycaenidae
Family
Description:
Alternate Common Name: Blue Mistletoe Hairstreak.
Note: This species includes a subspecies, millerorum,
which occurs in Mexico.
Range:
This species ranges from southern British Columbia and Alberta south to southern
California and into Mexico. In the U.S., it extends as far east as Colorado
and New Mexico. It occurs through much of Idaho,
but predominantly in the central portion of the state.
Habitat:
Typical habitat includes coniferous and mixed forests and
desert canyons.
Diet:
Caterpillar:
Caterpillars feed on the external parts of dwarf mistletoes (Arceuthobium
spp.), a parasitic plant that lives on a variety of conifers.
Adult:
Butterflies drink flower nectar, often from flowers belonging to the sunflower
family (Asteraceae).
Ecology:
There is one generation of caterpillars through most of its range while
there may be several in the south. Each undergoes five stages of growth, called
instars. The caterpillar
is equipped with a honey gland, also known as a dorsal nectary organ, which
emits a sugary solution agreeable to ants. The ants feed on the solution and
in turn protect the caterpillar from predators. Pupae overwinter in a physiological state called
diapause in the
mass of plant growth of the host tree, caused by the mistletoes presence.
Adults generaly fly
from March through October, with most adults in the northern part of its range
appearing in June. The thin "tail" on each of the hindwings of adults
is thought to mimic insect antennae and thus misleads bird predators into biting
at the wrong end and only getting a mouthful of wing, while the butterfly escapes
in the other direction.
Reproduction:
Males perch
to wait for receptive females. Females lay eggs singly on mistletoes.
Conservation:
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Global Rank: | G5; populations are widespread, abundant, and secure. |
Ferris, C. D. and F. M. Brown. (eds.) 1981. Butterflies of the Rocky Mountain States. Univ. of Oklahoma Press, Norman, Oklahoma, USA, 442 pp.
Opler, P. A., H. Pavulaan, and R. E. Stanford. 1995. Butterflies of North America. Jamestown, North Dakota, USA: Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center Home Page. http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/distr/lepid/bflyusa/bflyusa.htm (Version 05Nov98).
Opler, P. A. and A. B.Wright. 1999. A Field Guide to the Western Butterflies. Second Edition. Peterson Field Guide Series. Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, New York, USA, 540 pp.
Pyle, R. M. 1981. National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Butterflies. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York, New York, USA, 924 pp.
Scott, J. A. 1986. The Butterflies of North America. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California, USA, 583 pp.
Stanford, R. E. and P. A. Opler. 1993. Atlas of Western U.S.A. Butterflies (Including Adjacent Parts of Canada and Mexico). Published by authors, Denver, Colorado, USA, 275 pp.