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 697 - 720 of 7151 verified sightings
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
Observation date: Sep 03, 2019
Submitted by: ian pepper
Region: Essex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 11, 2021
Observation date: Aug 29, 2016
Submitted by: datilson
Region: Montgomery County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 11, 2021
Observation date: Jul 14, 2019
Submitted by: billmac
Region: Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 10, 2021
Observation date: Jul 13, 2017
Submitted by: SBurton
Region: Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 09, 2021
Observation date: Aug 27, 2017
Submitted by: brendaclem
Region: Greene County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 08, 2021
Observation date: Sep 10, 2017
Submitted by: gjkoppel
Region: Accomack County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 08, 2021
Observation date: Aug 31, 2018
Submitted by: LivObs
Region: Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 08, 2021
Observation date: Jun 17, 2018
Submitted by: MarthaEF
Region: Fairfax County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 07, 2021
Observation date: Jun 21, 2018
Submitted by: kbeza31979
Region: Hanover County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 07, 2021
Observation date: Jun 01, 2019
Submitted by: Mendrola
Region: Northampton County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 04, 2021
Observation date: Aug 28, 2019
Submitted by: WirelessMike
Region: Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 03, 2021
Observation date: May 21, 2020
Submitted by: John LeBlanc
Region: Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 01, 2021
Observation date: Aug 05, 2014
Submitted by: LadyAshleyR
Region: Accomack County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jan 01, 2021
Observation date: Oct 24, 2020
Submitted by: Paula Card
Region: Prince Edward County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Dec 29, 2020
Observation date: Aug 09, 2019
Submitted by: pk2morgan
Region: Hartford County, Connecticut, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Dec 21, 2020
Observation date: Jul 25, 2018
Submitted by: silverliningmm
Region: Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Dec 18, 2020
Observation date: Aug 07, 2016
Submitted by: B Manning
Region: Polk County, Iowa, United States
Verified by: Eric Wood
Verified date: Dec 10, 2020
Observation date: Aug 24, 2017
Submitted by: hannahmiller
Region: Dutchess County, New York, United States
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Dec 09, 2020
Observation date: Sep 15, 2015
Submitted by: gunhilda
Region: Camden County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Dec 09, 2020
Observation date: May 31, 2017
Submitted by: NCARI
Region: Dare County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Dec 08, 2020
Observation date: Jul 04, 2017
Submitted by: stuartp
Region: Orange County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Dec 08, 2020
Observation date: Jul 26, 2017
Submitted by: NCARI
Region: Dare County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Dec 08, 2020
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