gray hairstreak
(Strymon melinus)
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Biology • Distribution • Taxonomy
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Description |
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Size |
Total length: ⅝″ Wingspan: 1″ to 1½″ |
Similar Species |
Habitat |
Open sites, especially disturbed sites |
Biology |
Season |
Late May to mid-September |
Behavior |
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Life Cycle |
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Larva Hosts |
Flowers and fruits, especially plants of the pea (Fabaceae) and mallow (Malvaceae) families. |
Adult Food |
Nectar of blazing star, clovers, coneflower, dogbane, goldenrod, milkweed, mint, sweet clover, thistle, tick trefoil, vetch, and winter cress. |
Distribution |
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Sources |
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| 7/11/2025 | ||
Occurrence |
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Taxonomy |
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Order |
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Superfamily |
Papilionoidea (butterflies) |
Family |
Lycaenidae (gossamer-winged butterflies) |
Subfamily |
Theclinae (hairstreaks) |
Tribe |
Eumaeini |
Subtribe |
Strymonina |
Genus |
Strymon (scrub-hairstreaks) |
Subordinate Taxa |
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gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus ssp. atrofasciata) gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus ssp. caldasensis) gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus ssp. clarionensis) gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus ssp. franki) gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus ssp. humuli) gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus ssp. melinus) gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus ssp. pudica) gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus ssp. setonia) |
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Synonyms |
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Thecla favonius Thecla humuli Thecla pan Thecla silenus |
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Common Names |
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cotton square borer (larva) gray hairstreak |
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MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos |
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Slideshows |
Gray Hairstreak |
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Gray Hairstreak |
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Other Videos |
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Gray Hairstreak - September 7, 2013 |
About
Published on Sep 11, 2013 Gray Hairstreak (Strymon melinus), Mass Audubon Allens Pond, Westport, Massachusetts, Saturday morning, September 7, 2013, 11:06 AM - Canon PowerShot SX50 HS MVI_45532 |
Gray hairstreak |
About
Uploaded on Oct 21, 2008 Gray hairstreak butterfly(Stryman melinus) on a rabbitbrush(Chrysothamnus nauseosus) at Las Pilitas Nursery |
Gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus), 8/26/11, MD |
About
Published on Mar 9, 2012 Gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus), 8/26/11, MD http://www.geochembio.com/guides/butterflies-and-moths/gray-hairstreak-butterfly.html DSCN6163.MOV |
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Created: 12/2/2010 Last Updated: © MinnesotaSeasons.com. All rights reserved. |