''Callophrys sheridanii'', the Sheridan's hairstreak and Sheridan's green hairstreak, is a

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

in 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 North America along the south coast of

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

and parts of

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

, and New Mexico. In 2009, this species was adopted as the U.S. state butterfly for Wyoming.

Description

This small, tail-less butterfly has a wingspan of . The upperside is dark gray brown, with underside color ranging from a bright green to dark gray green. The lower part of the forewing is gray. ''Callophrys sheridanii'' has a white postmedian line of dots that may be straight or bulged out, and even reduced or absent. It is named for its characteristic straight, white line crossing the underside of both wings, although this may be less distinct in specimens from southern British Columbia.

Distribution

Although uncommon in Canada, this species is found from southern Alberta east to

. From British Columbia, the range extends south through Eastern Washington down to the

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...

of California. From Alberta, the species extends southward through the Rocky Mountains down to New Mexico.

Range and habitat

''Callophrys sheridanii'' remains within a range of approximately , living in such environments as sagebrush scrub, dry, brushy hillsides in badlands, chaparral, woodlands, subalpine scree, open hillsides, and on canyon slopes and washes.

Life history

Females have one brood between April and May. They lay eggs singly on various species of wild buckwheat leaves. The eggs are flattened and hemispherical in shape, and very pale green in color. The larvae range from a green to pink color and feed on buckwheat. The caterpillars are a light green to pink color, and are covered with bunches of short stiff pines. They have two rows of white spots running down the back. They eat the leaves, but some prefer to eat the flowers and young fruits. Chrysalids then hibernate. In Washington, the caterpillars feed on sulphur umbrella plants (''

Eriogonum umbellatum ''Eriogonum umbellatum'' is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common name sulphurflower buckwheat, or simply sulphur flower. It is native to western North America from California to Colorado to central Canada, where it is abundant and fou ...

''). In adulthood, males perch looking for female mates in depressions or gulch bottoms. The adults drink flower

nectar Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualists ...

. They take flight between March and June, with specimens from British Columbia flying from mid-April to late May, while specimens in Alberta flying mid-May until late June.

Host plants

''Callophrys sheridanii'' larvae and caterpillars feed on various species of wild buckwheat, including ''

Eriogonum racemosum ''Eriogonum'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Polygonaceae. The genus is found in North America and is known as wild buckwheat. This is a highly species-rich genus, and indications are that active speciation is continuing. It in ...

'' and ''

Eriogonum heracleoides ''Eriogonum heracleoides'' (common names; parsnipflower buckwheat, whorled buckwheat, and Wyeth buckwheat) is a plant of western North America that has many flowering clusters which are usually cream colored, or off-white. It can usually be found ...

''.

Subspecies

*''Callophrys sheridani sheridanii'', white-lined Sheridan's hairstreak *''Callophrys sheridani comstocki'', desert Sheridan's hairstreak *''Callophrys sheridani lemberti'', alpine Sheridan's hairstreak *''Callophrys sheridani pseudodumetorum'' *''Callophrys sheridani newcomeri'', whitelined green hairstreak (occurs in southern British Columbia) *''Callophrys sheridani neoperplexa'', Sheridan's green hairstreak (occurs in southwestern Alberta)

Similar species

All green hairstreaks appear very similar.

Conservation status

Although quite rare in certain parts of its range, conservation is usually not required.

References

External links

ImagesImagesSkeletonizing of the leaf of subspecies ''Callophrys sheridani neoperplexa''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Callophrys Sheridanii Callophrys Butterflies of North America Butterflies described in 1877 Symbols of Wyoming