American Copper
Lycaena phlaeas (Linnaeus, 1761)
Family: Lycaenidae
Subfamily: Lycaeninae
Identification: Upper surface of forewing shiny, fiery orange-red with black spots; hindwing gray with orange-red outer margin. Underside gray; hindwing with submarginal row of orange-red zigzags.
Wing Span: 7/8 - 1 3/8 inches (2.2 - 3.5 cm).
Life History: Males perch on grass or weeds to look for females. Eggs are laid singly on host plant stems or leaves. Young caterpillars chew holes in the underside of leaves; older ones make channels in the leaf tissue. Chrysalids overwinter.
Flight: One flight from July-September for alpine and arctic populations. Two flights in the north from June-July and August-September; three flights in the south from April-September.
Caterpillar Hosts: Herbs of the buckwheat (Polygonaceae) family including sheep sorrel (Rumex acetosella), curled dock (Rumex crispus), and Oxyria digyna.
Adult Food: Nectar from many flowers including common buttercup, white clover, butterflyweed, yarrow, ox-eye daisy, and various composites.
Habitat: In disturbed places in the East including pastures, landfills, vacant lots, road edges, old fields; rocky places in alpine habitats, and tundra in the arctic.
Range: Nova Scotia south to Georgia, Tennessee, and Arkansas; west across Great Lake states to North Dakota. Native populations found in the Arctic and the western mountains. Comments: Eastern and midwest populations probably result from an introduction from Scandinavia during the colonial period.
Conservation: Not usually required.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None reported.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 145 - 168 of 6493 verified sightings
Observation date: May 25, 2015
Submitted by: tirvine2020
Region: Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 11, 2021
Observation date: Jul 21, 2019
Submitted by: billmac
Region: Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 11, 2021
Observation date: Jul 12, 2016
Submitted by: Rita Venable
Region: Grayson County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 10, 2021
Observation date: Jul 21, 2019
Submitted by: billmac
Region: Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 10, 2021
Observation date: Jul 08, 2019
Submitted by: billmac
Region: Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 10, 2021
Observation date: May 20, 2019
Submitted by: a-o
Region: Essex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 09, 2021
Observation date: May 11, 2019
Submitted by: ian pepper
Region: Essex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 09, 2021
Observation date: May 20, 2018
Submitted by: a-o
Region: Essex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 06, 2021
Observation date: Aug 30, 2018
Submitted by: wallap74
Region: Madison County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 05, 2021
Observation date: Jul 15, 2019
Submitted by: Susan McSwain
Region: Nelson County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 03, 2021
Observation date: Jun 25, 2010
Submitted by: Roy Cohutta
Region: Rabun County, Georgia, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Dec 29, 2020
Observation date: Jul 06, 2018
Submitted by: Robert Gorman
Region: Hartford County, Connecticut, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Dec 21, 2020
Observation date: Jul 07, 2018
Submitted by: Robert Gorman
Region: New Haven County, Connecticut, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Dec 21, 2020
Observation date: Aug 09, 2017
Submitted by: John Ray Harrington
Region: Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Dec 18, 2020
Observation date: Jul 07, 2019
Submitted by: jwileyrains
Region: Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Dec 18, 2020
Observation date: Oct 03, 2016
Submitted by: Bluebirder
Region: Windham County, Connecticut, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Dec 16, 2020
Observation date: Aug 21, 2017
Submitted by: ridgerider
Region: Alleghany County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Dec 08, 2020
Observation date: Jun 28, 2018
Submitted by: julmast
Region: Elkhart County, Indiana, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Dec 03, 2020
Observation date: Aug 07, 2020
Submitted by: Ed Rothwell
Region: Ingham County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Nov 28, 2020
Observation date: Jul 30, 2020
Submitted by: Ed Rothwell
Region: Michigan, United States
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Nov 28, 2020
Observation date: Aug 21, 2020
Submitted by: Ed Rothwell
Region: Calhoun County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Nov 28, 2020
Observation date: Aug 07, 2020
Submitted by: Ed Rothwell
Region: Ingham County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Nov 28, 2020
Observation date: Oct 23, 2020
Submitted by: gjkoppel
Region: Bedford County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Oct 24, 2020
Observation date: Jul 31, 2020
Submitted by: Tom Dudones
Region: Franklin County, New York, United States
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Oct 06, 2020
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