''Satyrium saepium'', the hedgerow 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 ...

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 western North America, from

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, ...

south through

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

into

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

and east through northern

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 ...

to northern

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

and

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

. 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 of ...

is 26–30 mm. The upperside is metallic copper brown. The forewings of the males have a black (although sometimes pale) oval spot along the leading edge. The underside is brown with a blue spot near the tail. Adults are on wing from April to September. They feed on the

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 ...

of various flowers, including yerba santa and wild buckwheats. The larvae feed on the buckbrush (''

Ceanothus ''Ceanothus'' is a genus of about 50–60 species of Actinorhizal plant, nitrogen-fixing shrubs and small trees in the buckthorn family (Rhamnaceae). Common names for members of this genus are buckbrush, California lilac, soap bush, or just ceano ...

'' species,

Rhamnaceae The Rhamnaceae are a large family of flowering plants, mostly trees, shrubs, and some vines, commonly called the buckthorn family. Rhamnaceae is included in the order Rosales. The family contains about 55 genera and 950 species. The Rhamnaceae h ...

).Hedgerow Hairstreak
Butterflies of Canada They feed on the buds and uppersides of the leaves of their host plant.

Subspecies

*''S. s. caliginosum'' Emmel, Emmel & Mattoon, 1998 (California) *''S. s. chalcis'' (Edwards, 1869) (California) *''S. s. chlorophora'' (Watson & Comstock, 1920) (California) *''S. s. fulvescens'' (H. Edwards, 1877) (California) *''S. s. latalinea'' Austin & Savage, 1998 (Utah) *''S. s. obscurofuscum'' Austin, 1998 (Nevada) *''S. s. provo'' (Watson & Comstock, 1920) (Utah) *''S. s. rubrotenebrosum'' Emmel, Emmel & Mattoon, 1998 (California) *''S. s. subaridum'' Emmel, Emmel & Mattoon, 1998 (California) *''S. s. saepium'' (California to British Columbia)

References

Butterflies described in 1852 Satyrium (butterfly) Lycaenidae of South America {{Eumaeini-stub