Lysandra albicans

Lysandra albicans
Male
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Lycaenidae
Genus: Lysandra
Species:
L. albicans
Binomial name
Lysandra albicans
(Gerhard, 1851)
Synonyms
  • Polyommatus albicans

Lysandra albicans, the Spanish chalk-hill blue, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in Spain and Western North Africa.[1]

Description

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The length of the forewings is 18–21 mm. The species of Lysandra are very similar and difficult to identify and L. albicans was once a subspecies of Lysandra coridon. It is the palest of the complex.[2] The upperside of the male is almost white, adorned with a sub marginal line of gray dots, sometimes very discoloured on the forewings. In the female it is brown with a short submarginal line of orange spots very discoloured on the forewings. The underside of the male is white-coloured or very light grey-blue adorned with a submarginal line of light spots while the female is ochre adorned with brown dots and a submarginal line of brown dots surrounded by orange colour that surrounding brown dots.

Biology

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The butterfly flies from June to August in a single generation. Its habitat consists of dry places with flowers, between rocks, 900 m to 1800 meters.

The larvae feed on Hippocrepis comosa and Hippocrepis multisiliquosa. They are attended by ants.

References

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  1. ^ Mensi, Paola; Lattes, Aldo; Salvidio, Sebastiano; Balletto, Emilio (1988). "Taxonomy, evolutionary biology and biogeography of South West European Polyommatus coridon (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae)". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 93 (3): 259–271. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.1988.tb01363.x. ISSN 0024-4082.
  2. ^ Adalbert Seitz in Seitz, A. in Seitz, A. ed. Band 1: Abt. 1, Die Großschmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes, Die palaearktischen Tagfalter, 1909, 379 Seiten, mit 89 kolorierten Tafeln (3470 Figuren)
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