Lycaenidae : Polyommatinae
Small Blue
CUPIDO (Cupido) minimus (Fuessly, 1775)
Small Blue
CUPIDO (Cupido) minimus (Fuessly, 1775)
Life Cycle Guide
Description
Alternative Name: Little Blue
Wingspan: 17-27mm
Worldwide Distribution: Europe : Central Europe : Asia Minor : Transcaucasia : Tian-Shan : West,Central & South Siberia : Far East : Amur : Mongolia : Magadan : Kamchatka
UK Distribution: A rare and localised butterfly in Britain and Ireland,the strongholds of this butterfly occurring on the chalk and limestone grasslands of Southern England around the cotswolds and Salisbury plain.
UK Conservation Status -
Flight Period: April-May : A partial second brood occurs most years between mid July and late August producing small numbers compared to the first brood individuals.
Habitat: Uses a range of dry sheltered grassland where its larval food plant,Kidney Vetch is found and shrubs like dogwood for perching purposes : Coastal grassland : Man made quarries and banks : Disused railways : Road embankments.
Ovum: The female spends time flying over the larval food plant(usually Kidney Vetch in Britain)before selecting the tightest florets of the flowerhead to deposit a single egg usually growning in warm,sheltered depressions.The female usually leaves a chemical marker that will deter other females from using the same plant.The ova which are typically shaped like a flat circular doughnut with a dimpled centre hatch after three weeks.
Larva: The larvae when first hatched burrow deeply into the flower floret to feed on developing seeds and are known to be cannibalistic at this stage.
As they develop they are become grey-pink and are can be found feeding openly on flower clusters. At the third moult they are attracted to ants.
In late July they leave to flowers to find a hibernating site in a crevice on the ground or under the soil where they remain for dormant for nine months.
Pupa: In late April,early May the larva seeks a site on the ground under vegetation to pupate.The pupa also attracts ants.
Overwinters as: Overwinters as fully grown larva
Observations: The Small Blue as its name suggests is our smallest resident butterfly with upper sides a dusky colour with varying amounts of blue scales on the wings, making it a butterfly that can be often overlooked unless recorded on a particular site.
In general the butterfly is declining over its range and as such is considered a butterfly of conservation concern.
The butterfly is sedentary in nature,forming small and discreet colonies of usually no more than 30 individuals.
Like many lycaenids the Small Blue tend to spend a considerable time resting on shrubs where they will investigate passing insects although the butterfly is not considered to be territorial in nature.
Wingspan: 17-27mm
Worldwide Distribution: Europe : Central Europe : Asia Minor : Transcaucasia : Tian-Shan : West,Central & South Siberia : Far East : Amur : Mongolia : Magadan : Kamchatka
UK Distribution: A rare and localised butterfly in Britain and Ireland,the strongholds of this butterfly occurring on the chalk and limestone grasslands of Southern England around the cotswolds and Salisbury plain.
UK Conservation Status -
- NERC S.41 : 2008 (England) & NERC S.42 : 2009 (Wales) - Species "of principle importance for the purpose of conserving biodiversity
- Northern Ireland - Priority Species : 2010
- Scottish Biodiversity List : 2005
- Near Threatened - Butterfly Red List for Great Britain 2010
- BAP : 2007 - Priority Species
- Least Concern
- Papilio minimus Fuessly, 1775
- Papilio minimus Fuessly, 1775
- Switzerland
Flight Period: April-May : A partial second brood occurs most years between mid July and late August producing small numbers compared to the first brood individuals.
Habitat: Uses a range of dry sheltered grassland where its larval food plant,Kidney Vetch is found and shrubs like dogwood for perching purposes : Coastal grassland : Man made quarries and banks : Disused railways : Road embankments.
Ovum: The female spends time flying over the larval food plant(usually Kidney Vetch in Britain)before selecting the tightest florets of the flowerhead to deposit a single egg usually growning in warm,sheltered depressions.The female usually leaves a chemical marker that will deter other females from using the same plant.The ova which are typically shaped like a flat circular doughnut with a dimpled centre hatch after three weeks.
Larva: The larvae when first hatched burrow deeply into the flower floret to feed on developing seeds and are known to be cannibalistic at this stage.
As they develop they are become grey-pink and are can be found feeding openly on flower clusters. At the third moult they are attracted to ants.
In late July they leave to flowers to find a hibernating site in a crevice on the ground or under the soil where they remain for dormant for nine months.
Pupa: In late April,early May the larva seeks a site on the ground under vegetation to pupate.The pupa also attracts ants.
Overwinters as: Overwinters as fully grown larva
Observations: The Small Blue as its name suggests is our smallest resident butterfly with upper sides a dusky colour with varying amounts of blue scales on the wings, making it a butterfly that can be often overlooked unless recorded on a particular site.
In general the butterfly is declining over its range and as such is considered a butterfly of conservation concern.
The butterfly is sedentary in nature,forming small and discreet colonies of usually no more than 30 individuals.
Like many lycaenids the Small Blue tend to spend a considerable time resting on shrubs where they will investigate passing insects although the butterfly is not considered to be territorial in nature.
Photo Gallery
Larval Food Plants Worldwide
Note - Plants hyperlinked in red below take the visitor to the relevant plant page on"Plants for a Future" website
where further information like photos,physical
characteristics,habitats,edible uses,medicinal
uses,cultivation,propagation,range,height etc. are clearly listed.
- Plant Families - in bold red below takes the visitor to the relevant "Lepi-plants" page where other butterflies & moths using the plants below are listed.
- Fabaceae - Leguminosea - The Pulse - Bean - Pea - Legume Family
- Anthyllis vulneraria - Kidney Vetch - Woundwort - Common Kidneyvetch
- Astragalus aboriginorum - Indian Milk-vetch
- Astragalus alpinus - Alpine Milk-vetch
- Astragalus cicer - Wild Lentil - Chickpea Milk-vetch
- Astragalus glycyphyllos - Milk Vetch - Wild Liquorice
- Astragalis penduliflorus - Alpenlinse - Mountain lentil
- Colutea arborescens - Bladder Senna
- Coronilla juncea - Crown of thin sheets
- Coronilla varia - Crown Vetch
- Lotus corniculatus - Bird's-foot Trefoil - Common Bird's-foot Trefoil
- Melilotus officinalis - Yellow Sweet Clover - Yellow Melilot - Ribbed Melilot
- Oxytropis campestris - Field Locoweed
- Oxytropis jacquinii - Mountain Milk-vetch
Larval Food Plants
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Taxonomy
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Kingdom:
Subkingdom: Phylum: Subphylum Class: Order: Superfamily: Family: Subfamily Tribe: Genus: Subgenus: Accepted Species Name: Type Species-CUPIDO: Original Species Name: Species Names: Original Nominate Subspecies: Literary Ref: Type Locality: Aberrrations: Subspecies: |
Animalia
Eumetozoa Arthropoda Hexapoda Insecta Lepidoptera Papilionoidea Lycaenidae Polyommatinae Polyommatini CUPIDO Schrank, 1801 Cupido Schrank, 1801 Cupido ( Cupido ) minimus (Fuessly, 1775) - Papilio minimus (Fuessly, 1775) - PAPILIO minimus (Fuessly, 1775) = Papilio alsus Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775 = Papilio minimus Esper, 1778 = Papilio pseudolus Bergstrasser, 1779 = Papilio alsus Fabricius, 1787 = Papilio minutus Esper, 1800 = Papilio puer Schrank, 1801 = Cupido puer Schrank, 1801 = Lycaena alsoides Gerhard, 1851 = magna (Heyne, 1895 = Zizera minima Butler, 1900 = Cupido trinacriae Verity, 1919 = Cupido minima - Papilio minimus minimus Fuessly, 1775 - Verzeichnis der ihm bekannten Schweitzerischen - pp. [1-12], 1-62, Taf. [1]. Title Page : p.31 : n.599 : Zürich, Winterthur. (Steiner). - Switzerland - C.m. caeca Courvoisier, 1907 C.m. magnipuncta Tutt, 1908 C.m. multistriata Howarth, 1973 C.m. obsoleta Tutt, 1896 C.m. pallida Tutt, 1896 C.m. semiobsoleta Tutt, 1908 C.m. striata Tutt, 1908 C.m. violascens Tutt, 1908 - C.m.trinacriae Verity, 1919-Sicily C.m.qilianus Murayama C.m.sanconensis Merit & Merit 2008-Sicily C.m.albocilia H.van Oorschot,van den Brink & B.van Oorschot,1984-Turkey |