Glaucopsyche melanops

Black-eyed blue
	Imagos in Spain
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Lycaenidae
Genus:	Glaucopsyche
Subgenus:	Glaucopsyche (Glaucopsyche)
Species:	G. melanops
Binomial name
	Glaucopsyche melanops; Boidsduval, 1828
	range
Synonyms
	Polyommatus melanops Boisduval, 1828;

Glaucopsyche melanops, the black-eyed blue, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in the western part of Southern Europe and North Africa.

The length of the forewings is 11–13 mm. The butterfly flies from May to July depending on the location.

The larvae feed on Fabaceae species.

Description from Seitz

L. melanops Bdv. (= saportae Hbn.) (82 h). Above similar to the smallest varieties of cyllarus, but the ocelli of the forewing beneath are enlarged, usually much more than in our figure; the row, moreover, is strongly curved and the ocelli gradually increase in size from the first to the fifth, the sixth ocellus, if present, being smaller again. In South- West Europe, ab. elongata Courv. (= marchandii Gerh.) has elongate ocelli; ab. marchandii Bdv. is beneath without ocelli. — In North Africa there occurs a considerably larger form with broader black margin to the forewing and somewhat darker underside; this is algirica Ruhl-Heyne. — Larva pale green, with thin dark markings; a brownish dorsal stripe and a white side-line, between which a dark green pencilling; head black. Until June on Dorycynium. Pupa pale brown, with black dots on the sides. In spring, usually frequent wherever it occurs.^[2]

Biology

The habitat is garrigue, degraded orchards and scrub, hot dry grassfield margins and woodland edge between 100m-800m. Larval foodplants include Lotus dorycnium, Sulla flexuosa (Hedysarum flexuosum L.).Adults feed on various small composites.

Habitat in Portugal

References

^ "Glaucopsyche melanops". Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
^ Adalbert Seitz in Seitz, A. ed. Band 1: Abt. 1, Die Großschmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes, Die palaearktischen Tagfalter, 1909, 379 Seiten, mit 89 kolorierten Tafeln (3470 Figuren)

External links

Butterflies of Europe

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[1] "Glaucopsyche melanops". Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved 5 July 2021.

[2] Adalbert Seitz in Seitz, A. ed. Band 1: Abt. 1, Die Großschmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes, Die palaearktischen Tagfalter, 1909, 379 Seiten, mit 89 kolorierten Tafeln (3470 Figuren)

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