''Lycaena dorcas'' is a species of

butterfly Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...

in the family

Lycaenidae Lycaenidae is the second-largest family (biology), 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 gossamer-winged butterflies. Its common names include dorcas copper and cinquefoil copper. The species was first described by William Kirby in 1837. It is native to North America. The species '' L. dospassosi'' was once included in ''L. dorcas''.

Description

The top side is brown. The male has a blue-purple

iridescence Iridescence (also known as goniochromism) is the phenomenon of certain surfaces that appear gradually to change colour as the angle of view or the angle of illumination changes. Iridescence is caused by wave interference of light in microstru ...

and the female has a few lighter areas. The male is similar in coloration to that of '' L. helloides''. The hindwings have red-orange spots on the border. The underside is brown with a slight orange tint. The wingspan is . The

caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder ...

is pale green with a single dark green dorsal line and faint white bands.

Range and habitat

''L. dorcas'' occurs as far north as boreal

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

and south to

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

in the west and the

Great Lakes region The Great Lakes region of Northern America is a binational Canadian– American region centered on the Great Lakes that includes the U.S. states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin and the Ca ...

in the east. There is an isolated population in

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

. Its habitat includes bogs and old overgrown fields.

Life cycle

There is one flight between June and September. The male stays near the host plant to seek females. The females lay white eggs singly on the undersides of the leaves. The eggs drop with the leaves in autumn and overwinter. The caterpillars hatch in spring and return to the host plant to feed. Larval host plants include '' Potentilla fruticosa'' and species of ''

Rumex The docks and sorrels, genus ''Rumex'', are a genus of about 200 species of annual, biennial, and perennial herbs in the buckwheat family, Polygonaceae. Members of this genus are very common perennial herbs with a native almost worldwide distri ...

'' and ''

Polygonum ''Polygonum'' is a genus of about 130 species of flowering plants in the buckwheat and knotweed family Polygonaceae. Common names include knotweed and knotgrass (though the common names may refer more broadly to plants from Polygonaceae). In the ...

''.

References

* * * * * Lycaena Butterflies of North America Taxa named by William Kirby (entomologist) Butterflies described in 1837 {{Lycaeninae-stub