''Allosmaitia wildei'', the small oakblue or white oakblue, is a butterfly 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 butterfl ...
. It is found in
Irian Jaya, western
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu
Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea).
It is a simplified version of ...
, and from
Cape York to
Innisfail in northern
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
, Australia.
Their
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 of ...
is about 30 mm.
Their larvae feed on ant eggs, and probably also the larvae. They live in the arboreal nests of the ant species ''
Polyrhachis
''Polyrhachis'' is a genus of formicine ants found in the Old World with over 600 species. The genus is yet to be comprehensively resolved and contains many varied species including nest-weavers (e.g. ''Polyrhachis dives''), swimming workers ( ...
queenslandica''.
Subspecies
*''Arhopala wildei wildei'' (Australia, from Cape York to Kuranda)
*''Arhopala wildei soda'' (Tagula, Woodlark Island)
*''Arhopala wildei neva'' (New Guinea)
External links
Australian InsectsAustralian Faunal Directory
Arhopala
Butterflies of Oceania
Butterflies described in 1891
{{Theclinae-stub