''Chlorostrymon telea'', the telea hairstreak, is a
butterfly
Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The group comprises ...
of the family
Lycaenidae
Lycaenidae is the second-largest family of butterflies (behind Nymphalidae, brush-footed butterflies), with over 6,000 species worldwide, whose members are also called gossamer-winged butterflies. They constitute about 30% of the known butterfly ...
. It was described by
William Chapman Hewitson
William Chapman Hewitson (9 January 1806, in Newcastle upon Tyne – 28 May 1878, in Oatlands Park, Surrey) was a British natural history, naturalist. A wealthy collector, Hewitson was particularly devoted to Coleoptera (beetles) and Lepidopter ...
in 1868. It is found from southern
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
and
Mexico
Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...
to
Colombia,
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
,
Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...
, eastern
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, t ...
and
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...
. The habitat consists of stream valleys of semideciduous dry forests.
The
wingspan
The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan ...
is 16–22 mm. The upperside of the males is iridescent purple blue, while females are dull grey blue. There is a white postmedian line on the underside, forming a W shape near the inner margin. Adults are on wing in June in southern Texas and from January to July in Central America. They feed on flower
nectar.
The larvae feed on the flowers of ''
Guazuma
''Guazuma'' is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Malvaceae.
Its native range is Mexico to Tropical America.
Species:
*'' Guazuma crinita''
*'' Guazuma invira''
*'' Guazuma longipedicellata''
*''Guazuma ulmifolia
''Guaz ...
'' species and Central American
soapberry Soapberry is a common name for several plants and may refer to:
* Plants in the genus ''Sapindus'', native to warm temperate to tropical regions in both the Old World and the New World. The berries of these plants contain a natural, low-sudsing de ...
.
Butterflies and Moths of North America
/ref>
References
Eumaeini
Butterflies of Central America
Butterflies of the Caribbean
Butterflies of North America
Lycaenidae of South America
Butterflies described in 1868
Taxa named by William Chapman Hewitson
{{Eumaeini-stub