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Digital Guide to Moth Identification

Lycaenidae 77a0653 – 4376   Icaricia saepiolus (Boisduval, 1852)

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Larva and Host Plants: Host familiy: Fabaceae.  Host genera: Astragalus Lotus[unresolved] Trifolium.  Notes: eggs laid in clover flowers (Pyle 1981); flowers & fruits (Scott 1986a); flowers & fruits (Scott 2020); [Lotus sp. record may refer to species reassigned to different genus].  (Shropshire & Douglas 2025) Similar Species: Pinned specimens of related species. (Hint: select View by Region on the related species page.) Synonymy: saepiolus (Boisduval, 1852) (Lycaena) - MONA 1983: 4376 ssp. a. amica (Edwards, 1863) (Lycaena)  caerulescens (Ferris, 1970) (Plebeius)  kodiak (Edwards, 1870) (Lycaena) ssp. b. insulanus (Blackmore, 1920) (Plebeius) ssp. c. littoralis (Emmel, Emmel & Mattoon, 1998) (Plebejus) ssp. d. saepiolus (Boisduval, 1852) (Lycaena) ssp. e. rufescens (Boisduval, 1869) (Lycaena) ssp. f. aehaja (Behr, 1867) (Lycaena) ssp. g. albomontanus (Austin & Emmel, 1998) (Plebejus) ssp. h. aureolus (Emmel, Emmel & Mattoon, 1998) (Plebejus) ssp. i. hilda (Grinnell & Grinnell, 1907) (Cupido)  boharti (Gunder, 1932) (Plebeius)  garthi (Gunder, 1928) (Plebeius) ssp. j. maculosus (Austin, 1998) (Plebejus) ssp. k. gertschi (dos Passos, 1938) (Plebeius) ssp. l. whitmeri (Brown, 1951) (Plebeius)  leussleri (Gunder, 1927) (Plebeius) Taxonomic Notes: Icaricia saepiolus (Boisduval, 1852) was formerly in the genus Plebejus.

References (Caution: DNA barcoding at BOLD provides evidence of relatedness, not proof of identification; some BOLD specimens shown may not be sequenced.)

Barcode of Life (BOLD) - Caution: Identifications often erroneous; DNA barcode provides evidence of relatedness, not proof of identification; many specimens not sequenced. Shropshire, K.J. & D.W. Tallamy, 2025. Lepidoptera of North America, north of Mexico: an annotated list containing geographic ranges and host-plant records. ZooKeys, 1261: 101-113; Suppl. 1. (PDF or read online) Species Page at BugGuide.Net Species Page at iNaturalist Species Page at the Butterflies of America

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