Melissa blue
| Melissa blue | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Lycaenidae |
| Genus: | Plebejus |
| Species: | P. melissa |
| Binomial name | |
| Plebejus melissa Edwards, 1873 | |
The Melissa blue (Plebejus melissa) is a butterfly of the Lycaenidae family. It is found in western North America, from Canada to Mexico. The Karner blue (Plebejus melissa samuelis) is a subspecies of the Melissa blue, and was described by the novelist/lepidopterist Vladimir Nabokov.
Plebejus melissa samuelis
Pupa of Plebejus melissa samuelis
Larva of Plebejus melissa samuelis
The wingspan is 22–35 mm. The butterfly flies from April to August depending on the location.
The larvae feed on Lupinus, Medicago and Lotus species.
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Plebejus melissa. |
External links
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/10/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.