Family:Lycaenidae
Family
Description:
Alternate Common Name: Buckwheat
Blue.
Note: There are many subspecies of E. battoides,
the distinctions being based primarily on differences in the species of host plants.
Each subspecies utilizes a specific variety of buckwheat (Eriogonum spp.).
Range:
It ranges from southern British Columbia south to Mexico, and east to western
Montana and central Colorado and New Mexico. In Idaho, it occurs primarily in the central and southwestern
portions of the state.
Habitat:
A species of drier habitats, it can be found in deserts, chaparral, open woodlands, and dunes.
Diet:
Caterpillar:
Caterpillars feed on the flowers and fruits of various species of wild buckwheat
(Eriogonum spp.).
Adult:
Butterflies drink nectar, most often from host plant flowers.
Ecology:
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. Also for protection,
the caterpillar bears a pair of everscible tubercles or tentacles
on the eighth segment.
These tubercles are usually housed within the body, but when the caterpillar
feels threatened by the approach of a potential predator, they can be pushed
out to release a chemical which mimics an ant alarm pheromone. This scent causes the ants to become
frenzied and aggressive, and the potential predator takes leave or is eaten
by the ants. There is one generation of caterpillars each growing season. Each
caterpillar undergoes four stages of growth, called instars. Pupae overwinter in a physiological state called
diapause; chrysalises are often
in the soil or leaf litter below host plants. Adults generally fly from mid-April to August, primarily
when the host plants in the area are in bloom.
Reproduction:
Males actively patrol
in search of receptive females. Females lay eggs singly on the flowers of host
plants.
Conservation:
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Global Rank: | Varies with subspecies. Several subspecies are listed as T1, which means each is critically imperiled because of extreme rarity and is imminently vulnerable to extinction. This includes the El Segundo Blue (Euphilotes battoides allyni) of California, which is listed as an Endangered Species. |
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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.
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