Size: Up to 1.0 inch wingspan

​

Key ID features:  Small. Male blue above with narrow dark wing borders, little or no orange along trailing edge of HW. Female dark brown above with prominent orange zigzag along trailing margin. Both sexes have checked fringe on FW. Below bluish-gray with bold black spots, larger on FW, and broad orange submarginal line on HW.

​

Similar species: Best told from other Euphilotes blues by host-plant association, location and flight period.

 

Host plant: Eriogonum heracleoides (Parsnip-flower buckwheat).

​

Habitat: Well-drained sites where host plant grows, including high plateaus, ridges and roadsides. ​

​

Range: All of northeast Oregon, and in Warner Mountains and southern Deschutes County

​

Season: Late April to late June

​

Abundance: Common

 

Conservation Status: Secure