Celastrina lucia

Celastrina lucia
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Lycaenidae
Genus:	Celastrina
Species:	C. lucia
Binomial name
Celastrina lucia (Kirby, 1837)[1]
Synonyms
Lycaena lucia Kirby, 1837 Lycaena marginata Edwards, 1883 Celastrina fumida (Scudder, 1889) Celastrina pseudora (Scudder, 1889) Celastrina brunnea Tutt, 1908 Celastrina subtusjuncta Tutt, 1908 Celastrina inaequalis Tutt, 1908

Celastrina lucia, the lucia azure, northern azure, eastern spring azure or northern spring azure, is a species of butterfly of the Lycaenidae family. It is found eastern North America, ranging from the Maritimes south through the Appalachian Mountains to West Virginia.^[2]

The wingspan is between 22–35 mm. Adults are sexually dimorphic. The dorsal wing surface of males is blue, while females have a broad, dark brown outer forewing margin. They are on wing from April to July.^[3]

The larvae feed on Vaccinium species, including V. pallidum. The larvae may be green, yellow, pink or brown, depending on their food source.

Taxonomy

Until the early 1990s, most North American azures were thought to be a single species, Celastrina ladon. More recently, research has revealed that there are many different species of azures, including C. lucia,^[4] which has been treated as a subspecies of C. ladon.

Gallery

• 
  Variation in larval colour pattern of C. lucia found on Viburnum lentago (left column) and Cornus alternifolia (right column).

References

1. Celastrina at Markku Savela's website on Lepidoptera
2. Bug Guide
3. University of Alberta E.H. Strickland Entomological Museum
4. Celastrina ladon complex - USA National Phenology Network