Greenish Blue
Plebejus saepiolus (Boisduval, 1852)
Family: Lycaenidae
Subfamily: Polyommatinae
Identification: Upperside of male iridescent green-blue; females brown with blue at wing bases. Underside is pale gray with green at wing bases and rows of irregular black spots.
Wing Span: 1 - 1 1/4 inches (2.5 - 3.2 cm)
Life History: Males patrol near the host plants, close to the ground. Eggs are laid in flower buds of clover; caterpillars eat the developing flowers. Half-grown caterpillars hibernate, then resume feeding and development the following year.
Flight: One flight from May-July.
Caterpillar Hosts: Flowers of various clovers, especially alsike (Trifolium hybridum).
Adult Food: Nectar from flowers including clovers (Trifolium species).
Habitat: Bogs, roadsides, stream edges, open fields, meadows, open forests.
Range: Boreal western North America from central Alaska south along mountains to southern California and southwestern New Mexico; east across southern Canada and northern Great Lakes area to Maine.
Conservation: The San Gabriel Blue, an undescribed subspecies, is extinct. It lived in wet meadows of the Big Pine Recreation Area in the San Gabriel mountains of southern California until the U. S. Forest Service drained the meadows. Excluding the San Gabriel Blue, the species 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.
NCGR:
Management Needs: Restore meadow habitat in Big Pine Recreation Area.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 97 - 120 of 939 verified sightings
Observation date: Jul 11, 2022
Submitted by: Pheasantboy77
Region: Gallatin County, Montana, United States
Verified by: stevekohler
Verified date: Jan 18, 2023
Observation date: May 31, 2022
Submitted by: stevecary
Region: Greenlee County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: John Saba
Verified date: Dec 29, 2022
Observation date: Jul 24, 2022
Submitted by: bristolmpu
Region: Deschutes County, Oregon, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Oct 03, 2022
Observation date: Jul 02, 2018
Submitted by: Liz Osborn
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Sep 23, 2022
Observation date: Jun 11, 2019
Submitted by: Liz Osborn
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Sep 16, 2022
Observation date: Jun 26, 2019
Submitted by: Liz Osborn
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Sep 16, 2022
Observation date: Jul 19, 2020
Submitted by: Scott Denkers
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Sep 10, 2022
Observation date: Jul 09, 2022
Submitted by: tjay13
Region: Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Sep 07, 2022
Observation date: Jul 09, 2022
Submitted by: tjay13
Region: Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Sep 07, 2022
Observation date: Jul 02, 1985
Submitted by: James Steen
Region: Tulare County, California, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Aug 17, 2022
Observation date: Jul 01, 1984
Submitted by: James Steen
Region: Ventura County, California, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Aug 15, 2022
Observation date: May 27, 2012
Submitted by: Naseem Reza
Region: Door County, Wisconsin, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Aug 06, 2022
Observation date: Jul 26, 2022
Submitted by: MAKI
Region: Siskiyou County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Aug 01, 2022
Observation date: Jun 12, 2011
Submitted by: cpcdolan
Region: Archuleta County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Jul 21, 2022
Observation date: Jul 02, 2022
Submitted by: Seth Mueller
Region: St. Louis County, Minnesota, United States
Verified by: Tom Middagh
Verified date: Jul 20, 2022
Observation date: Jul 05, 2022
Submitted by: twofried
Region: Taos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 08, 2022
Observation date: Jun 27, 2022
Submitted by: twofried
Region: Taos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 04, 2022
Observation date: Jun 21, 2022
Submitted by: MAKI
Region: Lassen County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 03, 2022
Observation date: Jun 27, 2022
Submitted by: twofried
Region: Taos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 03, 2022
Observation date: Jun 09, 2022
Submitted by: asabspade
Region: Mendocino County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jun 12, 2022
Observation date: Jun 09, 2022
Submitted by: asabspade
Region: Mendocino County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jun 12, 2022
Observation date: Jun 06, 2022
Submitted by: butterflies4us
Region: Inyo County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jun 11, 2022
Observation date: Jul 26, 2021
Submitted by: stevecary
Region: Taos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Mar 11, 2022
Observation date: Aug 21, 2021
Submitted by: NikkiM
Region: Carbon County, Montana, United States
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: Jan 24, 2022
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