''Celastrina neglecta'', the summer azure, is a

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 ...

of 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 ...

. It is found in North America. Layberry, Hall, and Lafontaine, in ''The Butterflies of Canada'', describe the species:

The upper surface is pale blue with an extensive dusting of white scales, especially on the hindwing. In some females the blue is almost entirely replaced by white with a small amount of blue near the wing bases. Females have a broad blackish-grey band on the outer third and costa of the forewing. The underside is chalky white to pale grey with tiny dark grey spots and a zigzagged submarginal line on the hindwing.

Wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the opposite wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingsp ...

is . Known host plants for the caterpillars include

New Jersey tea ''Ceanothus americanus'' is a species of ''Ceanothus'' shrub native to North America. Common names include New Jersey tea, Jersey tea ceanothus, variations of red root (red-root; redroot), mountain sweet (mountain-sweet; mountainsweet), and wild ...

dogwoods ''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods or cornels, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous ...

, and meadowsweet. Adults nectar from many plants including

vetch ''Vicia'' is a genus of over 240 species of flowering plants that are part of the legume family (Fabaceae), and which are commonly known as vetches. Member species are native to Europe, North America, South America, Asia and Africa. Some other g ...

yarrow ''Achillea millefolium'', commonly known as yarrow () or common yarrow, is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. Growing to tall, it is characterized by small whitish flowers, a tall stem of fernlike leaves, and a pungent odor. The plan ...

, meadowsweet, rough-fruited cinquefoil, Queen Anne's lace, wild oregano ('' Origanum vulgare''), narrow-leaved mountain mint, Joe-pye weed, and goldenrods. The summer azure occurs across most of eastern and central United States as well as southern Canada from

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

to southern

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

. Adults fly from mid-June until early October with two or three generations in the south. The taxonomic status of this butterfly, originally described as ''Lycaena neglecta'' Edwards, 1862, has been in flux over the years. It was at one time treated as a synonym of ''Celastrina argiolus lucia'' ('' Lycaena lucia'' Kirby, 1837).

Similar species

Spring azure ''Celastrina ladon'', the spring azure or echo blue, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in North America from Alaska and Canada south of the tundra, through most of the United States except the Texas coast, southern plain and p ...

(''C. ladon'') * Cherry gall azure (''C. serotina'') * Holly azure (''C. idella'') * Lucia azure (''C. lucia'')

References

External links

Summer azure
Butterflies and Moths of North America neglecta Butterflies of North America Butterflies described in 1862 Taxa named by William Henry Edwards {{Polyommatini-stub