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Gray Hairstreak
Strymon melinus (Hübner, 1818)
Family: Lycaenidae
Subfamily: Theclinae
Identification: One tail on hindwing. Upperside blue-gray with large red spot near tail. Underside of spring/fall form is dark gray, summer form is paler gray. Relatively straight postmedian line is white, bordered with orange on the inside edge.
Wing Span: 7/8 - 1 3/8 inches (2.2 - 3.5 cm).
Life History: Males perch all afternoon on small trees and shrubs to seek receptive females. Eggs are laid singly on flowers of host plant. Young caterpillars feed on flowers and fruits; older ones may eat leaves. Chrysalids hibernate.
Flight: Two flights from May-September in the north, three-four flights from February-November in the south.
Caterpillar Hosts: Flowers and fruits from an almost endless variety of plants; most often from pea (Fabaceae) and mallow (Malvaceae) families including beans (Phaseolus), clovers (Trifolium), cotton (Gossypium), and mallow (Malva).
Adult Food: Nectar from many flower species including dogbane, milkweed, mint, winter cress, goldenrod, tick trefoil, and white sweet clover.
Habitat: Open, nonforested sites; common in disturbed, weedy areas.
Range: Throughout continental United States from southern Canada south to Mexico; southward to Venezuela. Comments: The most widespread hairstreak in North America.
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: Caterpillars may cause economic damage to bean and cotton crops.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 481 - 504 of 7147 verified sightings
Observation date: May 13, 2022
Submitted by: MBERS
Region: Santa Barbara County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: May 13, 2022
Observation date: May 11, 2022
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Charleston County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: May 13, 2022
Observation date: May 08, 2022
Submitted by: Reneerob17
Region: Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: May 09, 2022
Observation date: May 08, 2022
Submitted by: camflies
Region: Ventura County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: May 08, 2022
Observation date: May 01, 2022
Submitted by: jhdwelly
Region: Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: May 07, 2022
Observation date: Apr 30, 2022
Submitted by: Janet Ruth
Region: Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: May 06, 2022
Observation date: May 03, 2022
Submitted by: Ed Rothwell
Region: Spokane County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: May 06, 2022
Observation date: Apr 24, 2022
Submitted by: jamesvonloh
Region: Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: May 05, 2022
Observation date: Apr 29, 2022
Submitted by: weflybye
Region: Jefferson County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: May 03, 2022
Observation date: Apr 12, 2022
Submitted by: blablancwilis
Region: Douglas County, Kansas, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Apr 22, 2022
Observation date: Apr 21, 2022
Submitted by: mstanek
Region: Los Angeles County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Apr 21, 2022
Observation date: Apr 17, 2022
Submitted by: JudyLY
Region: Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Apr 18, 2022
Observation date: Sep 04, 2010
Submitted by: lassa8
Region: Boone County, Missouri, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Apr 15, 2022
Observation date: Apr 01, 2022
Submitted by: 1tom2go
Region: Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Apr 12, 2022
Observation date: Apr 07, 2022
Submitted by: weflybye
Region: Mason County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: Apr 07, 2022
Observation date: Jul 03, 2021
Submitted by: vic77
Region: Dickinson County, Kansas, United States
Verified by: azukoff
Verified date: Apr 06, 2022
Observation date: Aug 30, 2020
Submitted by: lassa8
Region: Montgomery County, Maryland, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Apr 06, 2022
Observation date: Mar 28, 2022
Submitted by: Joshua C
Region: Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Mar 28, 2022
Observation date: Mar 17, 2022
Submitted by: jamesvonloh
Region: Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Mar 19, 2022
Observation date: Feb 19, 2022
Submitted by: wallap74
Region: Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Mar 13, 2022
Observation date: Mar 01, 2022
Submitted by: Gordon Berman
Region: Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Mar 04, 2022
Observation date: Aug 30, 2018
Submitted by: griffinmf
Region: Suffolk County, New York, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Feb 28, 2022
Observation date: Aug 19, 2021
Submitted by: Seth Mueller
Region: San Bernardino County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Feb 27, 2022
Observation date: Sep 27, 2018
Submitted by: Jwalshusc
Region: Orange County, California, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Feb 24, 2022
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