Icaricia icarioides

Icaricia icarioides
Mission blue, male upperside.
Fender's blue, male underside.
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Lycaenidae
Genus: Icaricia
Species:
I. icarioides
Binomial name
Icaricia icarioides
(Boisduval, 1852)
Subspecies

See text

Synonyms
  • Lycaena icarioides Boisduval, 1852
  • Cupido icarioides (Boisduval, 1852)
  • Plebejus icarioides (Boisduval, 1852)
  • Aricia icarioides (Boisduval, 1852)

Icaricia icarioides,[1] or Boisduval's blue, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae found in North America. This butterfly has 25 recognized subspecies.[2]

Their range extends throughout the western US and Canada from southern Saskatchewan to British Columbia.[3] Its habitats include dunes, mountains, meadows, streams, and sage-lands. It is also found in open areas or openings in woods near its larval host.[4]

Larvae feed on species of lupines (Lupinus).[3] Adults feed on nectar from flowers of Eriogonum species and other composites.[4]

Wingspan: 21 to 32 mm.[3]

  1. ^ Savela, Markku. "Icaricia icarioides". Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  2. ^ "A Catalogue of the Butterflies of the United States and Canada by Jonathan P. Pelham". butterfliesofamerica.com. Retrieved 2019-06-19.
  3. ^ a b c Boisduval's Blue, Butterflies of Canada
  4. ^ a b "Icaricia icarioides". explorer.natureserve.org.