''Kretania martini'', or Martin's blue'','' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

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

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

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 butterf ...

and the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classifica ...

Polyommatinae Polyommatinae, the blues, are a diverse subfamily of gossamer-winged butterflies (family Lycaenidae). This subfamily was long used to assign taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more ...

Systematics

The species was first described by French entomologist Gaston Allard in 1867. He initially named the species ''Lycaena martini''. The

type specimen In biology, a type is a particular specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to anchor or centralizes th ...

was from

Lambaesis Lambaesis (Lambæsis), Lambaisis or Lambaesa (''Lambèse'' in colonial French), is a Roman archaeological site in Algeria, southeast of Batna and west of Timgad, located next to the modern village of Tazoult. The former bishopric is also a La ...

, in

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

. The species was placed in the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

'' Plebejus'', and the

subgenus In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between ...

''Plebejides,'' but was later moved to the genus '' Kretania'', along with other species placed in ''Plebejides''.

Subspecies

Several

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics ( morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all specie ...

have been described.Les Rhopalocères du Parc Naturel d'Ifrane
* ''Kretania martini martini'' (Allard, 1867) — from Algeria * ''Kretania martini ungemachi'' (Rothschild, 1926) — from the

High Atlas High Atlas, also called the Grand Atlas ( ar, الأطلس الكبير, Al-Aṭlas al-Kabīr; french: Haut Atlas; shi, ⴰⴷⵔⴰⵔ ⵏ ⴷⵔⵏ ''Adrar n Dern''), is a mountain range in central Morocco, North Africa, the highest part of t ...

and the Middle Atlas mountains of Morocco * ''Kretania martini mgouna'' (Tarrier, 2002) — from the M'Goun mountain in Morocco * ''Kretania martini regularis'' (Tennent, 1995) — from the Rif region of Morocco

Description

The

imago In biology, the imago (Latin for "image") is the last stage an insect attains during its metamorphosis, its process of growth and development; it is also called the imaginal stage, the stage in which the insect attains maturity. It follows the ...

of the species is a small butterfly which is

sexually dimorphic Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...

. The top of the male is blue purple with a thin black border and a white fringe, while that of the female is dark brown with a blue basal suffusion, white fringe, and a series of orange submarginal half moons and black marginal spots on the hindwings. The underside of the wings is beige gray decorated with black spots circled in white, with a series of orange submarginal half moons bordered by black and white chevrons, and a series of black marginal spots. The ornamentation resembles a similar species, '' Kretania allardii''.

Biology

Phenology

The species emerges from May to late June.

Host plants

Plants that host the species include '' Astragalus massiliensis'' and '' Acanthyllis numidia'' for ''K. m. martini'', '' Astragalus incanus incurvus'' for ''K. m. ungemachi'' and '' Astragalus armatus'' for ''K. m. regularis''. '' Astragalus alopecuroides'' and '' Astragalus nemorosus'' also host the species. The caterpillars exist in

myrmecophily Myrmecophily ( , ) is the term applied to positive interspecies associations between ants and a variety of other organisms, such as plants, other arthropods, and fungi. Myrmecophily refers to mutualistic associations with ants, though in its m ...

with ants from the genus '' Crematogaster.''

Distribution

The species is present in Northern Africa, specifically Morocco and in northern Algeria. It prefers fairly dry and flowery open environments, generally between 1,000 and 2,100 m above sea level.

Conservation

In Morocco, the subspecies ''Kretania martini ungemachi'' is considered vulnerable, and the subspecies ''K. m. regularis'' and ''K. m. mgouna'' endangered.