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 673 - 696 of 7149 verified sightings
Observation date: Apr 17, 2021
Submitted by: Ben Meredyk
Region: Whitman County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: Apr 20, 2021
Observation date: Oct 26, 2011
Submitted by: DVL
Region: Charlotte County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Apr 17, 2021
Observation date: Jul 16, 2017
Submitted by: papilio1
Region: Washoe County, Nevada, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Apr 14, 2021
Observation date: Apr 12, 2021
Submitted by: weflybye
Region: Mason County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: Apr 13, 2021
Observation date: Apr 07, 2021
Submitted by: Davi
Region: Dallas County, Texas, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Apr 07, 2021
Observation date: Sep 11, 2010
Submitted by: pkondrashov
Region: Linn County, Missouri, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Mar 26, 2021
Observation date: Jul 31, 2016
Submitted by: sueinsalem
Region: Marion County, Oregon, United States
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: Mar 18, 2021
Observation date: Mar 12, 2021
Submitted by: Kathy Early
Region: Santa Clara County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Mar 12, 2021
Observation date: Feb 03, 2021
Submitted by: vmaglio
Region: Maricopa County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: John Saba
Verified date: Mar 11, 2021
Observation date: Aug 25, 2019
Submitted by: Hill76crest
Region: Bristol County, Rhode Island, United States
Verified by: Harry Pavulaan
Verified date: Mar 06, 2021
Observation date: Mar 04, 2021
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe (Dennis Allen)
Region: Clarendon County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Mar 06, 2021
Observation date: May 01, 2019
Submitted by: wpr.wheeler
Region: Clark County, Nevada, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Mar 01, 2021
Observation date: Feb 24, 2021
Submitted by: mstanek
Region: Ventura County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Feb 25, 2021
Observation date: Aug 25, 2019
Submitted by: CincyJeff
Region: Scioto County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: Ohio97
Verified date: Feb 20, 2021
Observation date: Aug 12, 2018
Submitted by: Wade Wander
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: Jack Connor
Verified date: Feb 17, 2021
Observation date: Sep 21, 2020
Submitted by: Mlcombs
Region: Walton County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Feb 16, 2021
Observation date: Aug 09, 2020
Submitted by: JudyDarby
Region: St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Feb 14, 2021
Observation date: Feb 10, 2021
Submitted by: mstanek
Region: Ventura County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Feb 11, 2021
Observation date: Feb 02, 2021
Submitted by: MAKI
Region: Ventura County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Feb 07, 2021
Observation date: Sep 21, 2020
Submitted by: WYbutterflyer1
Region: Laramie County, Wyoming, United States
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: Feb 04, 2021
Observation date: Jun 09, 2020
Submitted by: mshannon
Region: Texas, Travis County, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Jan 27, 2021
Observation date: Sep 11, 2017
Submitted by: ian pepper
Region: Essex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 12, 2021
Observation date: Sep 04, 2020
Submitted by: Lauenstein
Region: Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 11, 2021
Observation date: Sep 11, 2019
Submitted by: ian pepper
Region: Essex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 11, 2021
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