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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Butterflies and Moths (Lepidoptera) » Butterflies and Skippers (Papilionoidea) » Blues, Coppers, Hairstreaks, Harvesters (Lycaenidae) » Hairstreaks (Theclinae)

Subfamily Theclinae - Hairstreaks

Classification · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Remarks · Internet References
Gray Hairstreak Caterpillar - Strymon melinus Eastern Pine Elfin - Callophrys niphon Gray Hairstreak - Strymon melinus Hickory Hairstreak?? - Satyrium caryaevorus MN June - Callophrys niphon Juniper Hairstreak - Callophrys gryneus Atlides halesus - male Satyrium liparops
Show images of: caterpillars · adults · both
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)
Superfamily Papilionoidea (Butterflies and Skippers)
Family Lycaenidae (Blues, Coppers, Hairstreaks, Harvesters)
Subfamily Theclinae (Hairstreaks)
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Often considered as a tribe - "Theclini" under a broader concept of subfamily Lycaeninae, which also incudes Blues and Hairstreaks, and others, as just tribes.
Remarks
The most notable feature of hairstreaks is the tails on the hindwings. Combined with bright spots that look like eyes, they give the illusion that the back end of the wings is really the head. This fools birds and other visually-oriented predators often enough to increase the hairstreaks' odds for survival.

Here's an example- both are the same species in the same area within a few days of each other:
You can see the fake eyes and antennae on this one:

And this one has survived an attack- it's missing a chunk of its wings, but it's still alive and flying around:
Internet References
Journal of Insect Science
Tree of Life
Wikipedia
Contributed by Troy Bartlett on 16 February, 2004 - 12:32pm
Additional contributions by Beatriz Moisset, Chuck Entz, David Ferguson
Last updated 12 July, 2015 - 1:29pm

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