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Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Great Copper butterfly. Gallery Prev Next West Eugene Wetlands, Lane Co, July 25 - female Great Copper Tharsalea xanthoides AKA Lycaena xanthoides Size: 1.25- 1.75 inches wingspan Key ID features: Large for a copper. May have very short tail. Female above gray-brown with tan patches, black spots, and orange lunules (series of crescent shapes) on the trailing edge of the HW. Male above gray-brown, with only a few small spots along HW trailing margin. Below HW grayish brown with black spots, submarginal white band, and pale zigzag orange line along VHW trailing margin. Female with bolder zigzag orange line along VHW trailing margin. Often has a noticeable though small tail. Similar species: Edith's Copper is smaller, often with darker dorsal ground color, and VHW spots are larger and closer together . Edith's tend to have no tail or a tiny stub of a tail. Host plant: Dock (Rumex ) species are suspected. Habitat: Grassy hillsides in the south, wet meadows in the Willamette Valley. Range: South Siskiyou Mtns, southern Willamette Valley. Season: Mid-June to early September Abundance: Locally common Conservation Status: Secure throughout most of its range, but population in southern Willamette Valley is perilously small.

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Shasta Blue butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Wickiup Plain, Lane Co, August 12 Shasta Blue Icaricia shasta Size: 0.85 - 1.25 inch wingspan Key ID features: Male dark blue above with dark cell end bars and white fringes. Female brown above with some blue scaling inwardly, and vague or no orange zigzag along trailing margin. Both sexes have distinct black cell end bars on FW. Both sexes gray below with gray-rimmed black median spots, and submarginal black spots with iridescent eyes bordered inwardly with black, rimmed inwardly with orange. Similar species: Separated from other Icaricia blues by gray ground color below and HW spots with iridescent eyes. Host plant: Several pea family species including lupines, clovers, and milkvetches . Habitat: High rocky ridges, plateaus, and high pumice flats. Range: Found in central and south-central Oregon in Ochocos, east slope of Cascades, Warners, and on Steens Mtn. Season: Mid-June to mid-August Abundance: Locally common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Nevada Skipper butterfly. Gallery Prev Next E Camp Cr Rd, Baker Co, June 22 Thank you to Dana Ross and Paul Hammond , volunteers at OSAC! Nevada Skipper Hesperia nevada Size: Up to 1.25 inch wingspan Key ID features: Above, bright tan-orange, dark wing borders fade into orange. Below dark gray-green with disjointed white spot band, with lowest white patch on outer band dramatically displaced inwardly. Similar species: Juba and Western Branded skippers also have the lowest white spot in the outer band displaced inwardly, but not nearly as much. Host plant: Grass species, including western needlegrass (Achnatherum occidentale ). Habitat: Sage-steppe plateaus, and ridge and peak summits, usually above 4500 feet. Range: Warner Mtns, Baker County, north end of Malheur County, south portion of Grant, Crook and Deschutes counties. Season: Early May to late July Abundance: Locally common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Arrowhead Blue butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Gert Canyon, Wasco Co, May 4, female Arrowhead Blue Glaucopsyche piasus Size: 1.0 - 1.25 inches wingspan Key ID features: Noticeably larger than most blues. Violet-blue above, with dark wing borders, white checked fringes. Below brownish-gray, HW with white arrows pointing toward median band of black spots. Similar species: No other Oregon blue has white arrows on HW below pointing toward body. Host plant: Lupine species (Lupinus ) Habitat: Open areas with lupines in sage-steppe, ponderosa pine stands, canyons and wet meadows. Range: Most of Oregon east of the Cascade Range and in SW Oregon. Season: Early April to late August Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Monarch butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Summer Lake, Lake Co, August 6 Monarch Danaus plexippus Size: 3.0 - 4.5 inch wingspan Key ID features: Large. Above deep orange with black veins, black borders with double row of white spots, FW tips black with white and light orange spots. Below, similar pattern except Orange areas on HW are light creamy orange, and FW tip has two creamy light orange patches surrounded by black border with white spots. Similar species: Viceroy is smaller, FWs shorter, has black curved line diagonally across HW. Host plant: Milkweeds (Asclepias ) . Habitat: Can be found almost anywhere during migration. Range: Found throughout Oregon. Season: Early June to late October Abundance: Uncommon Conservation Status: Has been submitted for Federal Listing as Threatened.

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Pelidne Sulphur butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Bonny Lakes Trail, Wallow Co, August 2 Pelidne Sulphur Colias skinneri AKA: Skinner's Sulphur Skinner's Pelidne Sulphur Size: 1.25 - 1.5 inches wingspan Key ID features: Smallish. Above lemon yellow, with solid dark brown to black borders. Below, HW dusted with black over-scaling, sometimes giving olive cast. On HW below, discal spot is small, thickly-rimmed in rose or reddish brown. Forewing also has more black over-scaling than other sulphurs in Oregon . Wing edges have a narrow rose-colored band (not pink). Similar species: This species has more extensive black overscaling on the VFW, which extends further from the FW leading edge. Clouded Sulphurs have double ring around discal spot on HW below. Western Sulphurs look greenish on HW below. Pink-edged Sulphurs have more rounded wings, and have much less overscaling below and have pink wing borders. Host plant: Various species of Vaccinium (huckleberry). Habitat: High forest clearings and moist meadows with Vaccinium . Range: In Oregon, only found in Wallowa Mtns and on Steens Mtn. Season: L ate June to early-September Abundance: Uncommon Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Pacuvius Duskywing butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Metolius River, Jefferson Co, June 30 Pacuvius Duskywing Erynnis pacuvius Size: Up to 1.5 inch wingspan Key ID features: Above, FW gray-brown with frosted band and spots, 3-5 tiny hyaline (glassy, translucent) spots on FW. W hen fresh, FW above often has noticeable brown patches. Female FW above often with gray scaling only outside of the dark brown patch in the FW cell area. HW plainer gray-brown sometimes with vague light spots. Below brown with light spots and hyaline spots on FW, few to no small vague spots on HW. Similar species: When fresh, FW above often has noticeable brown patches, which no other Oregon duskywings have. Host plant: Various ceanothus species. Habitat: Shrub lands, dry brushy areas, ponderosa pine/douglas-fir openings. Range: Cascade Range, Siskiyou Mtns, Klamath Mtns, NE Blue Mtns, Wallowa Mtns. Season: Late April to early August Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Desert Marble butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Smith Rocks State Pk, Jefferson Co, May 2 Desert Marble Euchloe lotta Size: 1.25 - 1.5 inches wingspan Key ID features: Above, pearly-white with black pattern on FW tip and thin black rectangle in forewing cell with no white scaling. VHW green marbling is lighter, with yellow wash and yellow veins. Similar species: Large Marble is notably larger. California Marble VHW has pearly or shiny look to white areas, with darker green marbling, and is found only in and near Josephine County. Host plant: Tall tumblemustard, tansy mustard, rockcress and other crucifers. Habitat: Primarily arid bottomlands, including desert flats, sage-steppe, bitterbrush plateaus, Pinyon-Juniper forest, and dry gullies. Range: Most of eastern Oregon except Blue, Aldrich and Wallowa Mtns. Season: Late March to late June Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Mormon Metalmark butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Trout Cr Campground, Jefferson Co, Sep 2 Mormon Metalmark Apodemia mormo Size: 1.0 - 1.2 inch wingspan Key ID features: Males above dark charcoal gray with reddish brown on the FW, and white spots of various shapes, broadly checked wing fringes. Female above similar but darker overall. Below HW with bold white patches against dark brown. FW mirrors pattern of FW above. Similar species: Looks vaguely similar to a copper, but none closely resembles it. Host plant: Many buckwheat species (Eriogonum ) . Habitat: Arid canyons and flats. Range: West of the Cascades, in Columbia and Snake River drainages, and along California border in Klamath and Warner Mtns, and in Cascade-Siskiyou NM. Season: Late July to early October Abundance: Uncommon Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Western Pine Elfin butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Meadow Cr, Jefferson Co, May 29 Western Pine Elfin Callophrys eryphon Size: 1.0 - 1.25 inches wingspan Key ID features: Above both sexes dark chocolate brown. Very distinctive pattern of zigzags on HW below, in black, browns and lavenders, with thin white median line. HW has submarginal light frosted line. Checked fringes, no tails. Similar species: Pattern below not likely to be confused with other elfin species. Hostplant: Ponderosa, Lodgepole and other species of pine (Pinus ) . Habitat: Primarily in clearings in Ponderosa pine forest, also in Lodgepole pine forests and Shore pine stands. Range: Cascade Range, Siskiyou Mtns, Ochoco Mtns, Klamath Mtns, Blue Mtns, and narrow band along the coast. Season: Late February to late August Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Northwestern Fritillary butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Frissell Ridge, Lane Co, July 17 Northwestern Fritillary Argynnis hesperis AKA Hesperis Fritillary AKA Speyeria hesperis Size: Up to 2.5 inch wingspan Key ID features: Medium orange above with black veins, black shading near the body, black irregular lines inwardly, submarginal black spot band and black marking along margin like chain links, bolder on female. Below ground color of "disc" on HW deep reddish to chocolate brown, with creamy to white elongated oval spots, and a distinct submarginal band of warm or pinkish tan, crossed by dark veins. Often with yellowish-tan "spashes" or rays within the discal area. The cream spot in the middle of the bottom of the ventral hindwing is usually "smeared" toward the outer edge. Similar species: Hydaspe has a submarginal band that is more pinkish and often less distinct, and the cream-colored spot on the bottom edge of the ventral hindwing is small and not smeared toward the outer edge. Host plant: Violet (Viola ) species . Habitat: Openings, riparian areas and meadows in pine and fir forests. Range: Found in central and southern Cascades, Siskiyou, Ochoco, Strawberry, Wallowa and Warner Mtns. Season: Mid-June to early September. Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Silvery Blue butterfly. Gallery Prev Next W Boundary Rd, Lane Co, April 28, male Silvery Blue Glaucopsyche lygdamus Size: 1.0 - 1.2 inches wingspan Key ID features: Male brilliant silvery-blue above, with narrow dark wing borders, white fringes, often with marginal row of small black spots. Female gray-brown with some blue scaling. Below gray or blue-gray, with bold median row of round black spots with white rims, and lighter discal cell end bars on FW and HW. Similar species: Boisduval's Blue has variable submarginal markings on HW and FW below. Host plant: Lupine species (Lupinus ). Habitat: Moist, open areas near lakes, streams and wetlands. Range: All of Oregon except north coast. Season: Mid-March to early September Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure