Greenish Blue

Icaricia saepiolus

The Greenish Blue is a small butterfly with beautiful greenish-blue wings. It flutters around flowers and is often seen in sunny places, bringing joy to everyone who spots it.

Lebensraum: Grasslands

Aussehen

The Greenish Blue male has brilliant, iridescent blue-green upper wings with narrow black edges. Females are duller blue or brown, sometimes with more extensive dark markings. Its underside is grayish-white with small black spots, each ringed with white, lacking any orange patches.

ReichAnimaliaStammArthropodaKlasseInsectaOrdnungLepidopteraFamilieLycaenidaeGattungIcaricia

Greenish Blue

Kategorie

Insekten

Seltenheit

Common

Gefahr

1/5 · Sehr gering

Snaps

Mach den ersten Snap!

Interessante Fakten

During winter, its chrysalis hides perfectly, sometimes for months, until spring arrives.

Its caterpillars snack on tasty pea and clover plants, which are called legumes.

Male butterflies flash brilliant iridescent blue, while females are often duller with more brown.

Some Greenish Blues fly great distances seeking new fields of their favorite food plants!

Besondere Fähigkeiten

Greenish Blue has special wing scales that reflect light in shimmering blue-green, helping them attract mates.

Greenish Blue caterpillars secrete sweet honeydew, attracting ants that protect them from predators.

Greenish Blue has a long, straw-like proboscis that helps them sip sweet nectar from deep inside flowers.

Greenish Blue's gray-spotted underwings allow it to blend into its surroundings when resting, hiding from predators.

Maße und Details

Flügelspannweite: 20-30 mm
Größe: 10-15 mm
Lebenserwartung: 5-15 Tage
Fluggeschwindigkeit: 10-20 km/h
Anzahl der Beine: 6

Ernährung und Fütterung

Caterpillars munch on plants, while adult butterflies enjoy sweet flower nectar.

Altersunterschiede: Larvae (caterpillars) eat leaves of legume plants; adults drink flower nectar.

Hauptnahrung

clover leaves
lupine leaves
vetch leaves
flower nectar
honeydew

Nahrungssuche

Foraging

Ökologische Zusammenhänge

symbiotic with

Silky Ant

Formica fusca

Ants protect caterpillars in exchange for honeydew.

eats

Red Clover

Trifolium pratense

Caterpillars feed on the leaves of this host plant.

eats

Bigleaf Lupine

Lupinus polyphyllus

Larvae also consume leaves of this common plant.

eaten by

Blue Jay

Cyanocitta cristata

Adult butterflies are a food source for various birds.

pollinates

Dandelion

Taraxacum officinale

Adults visit these flowers for nectar, spreading pollen.

Merkmale

Sozial

Soziale Tiere leben in organisierten Gruppen und kooperieren, um ihr Überleben zu sichern, beispielsweise bei der Nahrungssuche, Verteidigung und Aufzucht der Jungen.

Bestäubermagnet

Beschreibt Pflanzen, die für eine Vielzahl von bestäubenden Organismen besonders attraktiv und nützlich sind.

Farbenfroh

Farbenfroh beschreibt Organismen oder Objekte, die eine große Vielfalt an leuchtenden und deutlich erkennbaren Farben aufweisen.

Grasland

Grasland-Lebensräume sind terrestrische Biome, die von Gräsern und krautigen Pflanzen dominiert werden und einer Vielzahl von Weidetieren als Lebensraum dienen.