Long-tailed Blue (Lampides boeticus)

Family: Lycaenidae Checklist: 61.008

 
Description
Wing span: 24-34 mm. The Long-tailed Blue is a rare migrant from southern Europe. The male has violet-blue upper surfaces. The female is sooty-brown, with variable amounts of blue. The underside in both sexes is greyish-brown with a broad wavy white line on the hind-wing outer margin. Most records are from southern England. Its habitat is mostly hot and dry grasslands rich in flowers, but can also be found in cultivated plants and gardens.
 
Images (click to enlarge)
Long-tailed Blue ♂ © David Hastings
Long-tailed Blue ♂ underside © David Hastings
Male Male underside Female Female underside
 
Life Cycle
It occasionally breeds in southern England, but none of its stages can survive the winter here.
 
Larval Foodplants
The larvae feed on a variety of legumes.
 
Nectar Sources
Adults mainly feed on legume flowers.
 
UK Conservation Status
N/A
 
Earliest UTB first sighting (since 2004) : 20th July
Mean UTB first sighting (since 2004) : 4th August
 

Key
1 sighting 2-9 max seen 10+ max seen
This species is a vagrant in the UTB region.

 
Related Species
All Species