Tailed Copper
Lycaena arota (Boisduval, 1852)
Family: Lycaenidae
Subfamily: Lycaeninae
Identification: Each hindwing of both sexes has a tail. Upper surface of male copper-brown with iridescent purple sheen; female with orange and dark brown pattern. Underside of both sexes gray; forewing with black spots, hindwing with black scrawls and a band of submarginal white crescents.
Wing Span: 1 1/8 - 1 3/8 inches (3 - 3.5 cm).
Life History: Males perch in open areas, often near watercourses or ravines, in the morning to watch for females. Eggs are laid singly on host plant or on debris under it, and hibernate until the following spring. Caterpillars eat leaves.
Flight: One flight from May-August.
Caterpillar Hosts: Leaves of gooseberry and currant (Ribes species) in the Grossulariaceae family.
Adult Food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Open mixed woodland, sagebrush, chaparral.
Range: New Mexico north and west to Oregon, south to southern California and Baja California.
Conservation: Clouded copper, subspecies nubila, has greatly declined in the vicinity of Los Angeles, California. Lycaena arota nubila has The Nature Conservancy rank of T1 - Critically imperiled because of extreme rarity (5 or fewer occurrences, or very few remaining individuals), or because of some factor of its biology making it especially vulnerable to extinction. (Critically endangered throughout its range).
NCGR:
Management Needs: Conserve remaining habitat of clouded copper. Consider habitat rehabilitation and reintroduction.
Comments: NULL
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 121 - 144 of 397 verified sightings
Observation date: Sep 06, 1976
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (A. M. Shapiro)
Region: Trinity County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Aug 02, 2010
Observation date: Jun 23, 1987
Submitted by: paulopler (Paul Opler)
Region: Merced County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Apr 02, 2010
Observation date: Aug 01, 1983
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (John F. Emmel)
Region: Inyo County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Apr 02, 2010
Observation date: Jul 11, 1982
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (R. Langston, D. Parkinson)
Region: Mendocino County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Mar 09, 2010
Observation date: Aug 16, 1981
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Sterling Mattoon)
Region: Siskiyou County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Mar 09, 2010
Observation date: Aug 08, 1981
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Sterling Mattoon)
Region: Lassen County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Mar 09, 2010
Observation date: Sep 07, 1983
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (A. M. Shapiro)
Region: Siskiyou County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Mar 09, 2010
Observation date: Jul 12, 1988
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (A. M. Shapiro)
Region: Siskiyou County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Mar 09, 2010
Observation date: Jul 22, 1990
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (A. M. Shapiro)
Region: Siskiyou County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Mar 09, 2010
Observation date: Aug 01, 1987
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Laurence Crabtree)
Region: Lassen County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 25, 2010
Observation date: Aug 20, 1987
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Laurence Crabtree)
Region: Tehama County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 25, 2010
Observation date: Aug 01, 1986
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Laurence Crabtree)
Region: Plumas County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 25, 2010
Observation date: Jul 12, 1988
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (A. M. Shapiro)
Region: Siskiyou County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 25, 2010
Observation date: Jul 22, 1990
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (A. M. Shapiro)
Region: Siskiyou County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 25, 2010
Observation date: Sep 07, 1983
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (A. M. Shapiro)
Region: Siskiyou County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 25, 2010
Observation date: Jun 23, 1974
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Bruce Walsh)
Region: Monterey County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 07, 2010
Observation date: Sep 15, 2000
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Bill Gendron)
Region: Los Angeles County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 06, 2010
Observation date: Jun 30, 1972
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (George Balogh)
Region: San Benito County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 06, 2010
Observation date: Mar 20, 1971
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Dennis Sorg)
Region: Santa Clara County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 06, 2010
Observation date: Jun 29, 1973
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Larry Orsak)
Region: Orange County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 06, 2010
Observation date: Jun 28, 1963
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Kenneth Denton)
Region: Orange County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 06, 2010
Observation date: Jun 29, 1973
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Larry Orsak)
Region: Orange County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 06, 2010
Observation date: Jun 03, 1972
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Bob Koyama)
Region: Orange County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 06, 2010
Observation date: Jun 29, 1973
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Larry Orsak)
Region: Orange County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 06, 2010
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