Blue Copper
Lycaena heteronea Boisduval, 1852
Family: Lycaenidae
Subfamily: Lycaeninae
Identification: Upper surface of male bright blue, with darker veins; female dull blue to dark brown with numerous small dark spots. Underside of both sexes white to yellow-white; hindwing varies from having many to few black spots.
Wing Span: 1 1/8 - 1 3/8 inches (2.9 - 3.5 cm).
Life History: Most males patrol near host plants for females, but some perch. Females lay eggs singly on bracts under host leaves or umbels; eggs hatch the following spring. Young caterpillars feed on the underside of leaf; older ones eat all parts of the leaf.
Flight: One flight from May-August.
Caterpillar Hosts: Wild buckwheat (Eriogonum species) in the buckwheat family (Polygonaceae).
Adult Food: Nectar from flowers, including wild buckwheat.
Habitat: Brushy areas, open forest, mountain meadows, sagebrush; mostly at high elevations except for low elevations in central California.
Range: British Columbia south and east through southcentral California, northern Arizona, and northern New Mexico.
Conservation: Lycaena heteronea has The Nature Conservancy Global Rank of G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery. Varied Copper (subspecies clara) of southern California has been evaluated for conservation, and has The Nature Conservancy rank of T2 - Imperiled because of rarity (6 to 20 occurrences), or because of other factors demonstrably making it very vulnerable to extinction throughout its range. (Endangered throughout its range).
NCGR:
Management Needs: None reported.
Comments: NULL
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 193 - 216 of 510 verified sightings
Observation date: Aug 28, 1958
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Oakley Shields)
Region: Mono County, California, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Garth & Tilden)
Verified date: Dec 08, 2009
Observation date: Aug 04, 1958
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Oakley Shields)
Region: Madera County, California, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Garth & Tilden)
Verified date: Dec 08, 2009
Observation date: Aug 04, 1959
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Oakley Shields)
Region: Madera County, California, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Garth & Tilden)
Verified date: Dec 08, 2009
Observation date: Aug 07, 1957
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Oakley Shields)
Region: Mono County, California, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Garth & Tilden)
Verified date: Dec 08, 2009
Observation date: Jul 26, 1957
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Oakley Shields)
Region: Tuolumne County, California, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Garth & Tilden)
Verified date: Dec 08, 2009
Observation date: Jul 20, 1958
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Oakley Shields)
Region: Mono County, California, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Garth & Tilden)
Verified date: Dec 08, 2009
Observation date: Sep 03, 1958
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (J. W. Tilden)
Region: Tuolumne County, California, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Garth & Tilden)
Verified date: Dec 08, 2009
Observation date: Sep 07, 2009
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Mono County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Oct 13, 2009
Observation date: Sep 07, 2009
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Mono County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Oct 13, 2009
Observation date: Jul 11, 1994
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Inyo County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Sep 24, 2009
Observation date: Jul 11, 1994
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Inyo County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Sep 24, 2009
Observation date: Jul 13, 1986
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Alpine County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Sep 24, 2009
Observation date: Jul 15, 1986
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Amador County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Sep 18, 2009
Observation date: Jul 10, 1994
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Inyo County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Sep 18, 2009
Observation date: Jul 12, 1994
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Tuolumne County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Sep 18, 2009
Observation date: Aug 08, 1998
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Inyo County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Sep 18, 2009
Observation date: Jul 11, 1986
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Amador County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Sep 18, 2009
Observation date: Jul 13, 1986
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Alpine County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Sep 18, 2009
Observation date: Jul 04, 2000
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Kern County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Aug 28, 2009
Observation date: Jul 05, 2002
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Kern County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Aug 28, 2009
Observation date: Jul 15, 2006
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Kern County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Aug 28, 2009
Observation date: Jul 04, 2000
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Kern County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Aug 28, 2009
Observation date: Jul 05, 2003
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Tulare County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Aug 28, 2009
Observation date: Jul 11, 1976
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Jim Brock)
Region: Kern County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Aug 28, 2009
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