Hoary Elfin
Callophrys polios (Cook & Watson, 1907)
Family: Lycaenidae
Subfamily: Theclinae
Identification: No tails. Upperside is orangish brown; underside brown. Forewing with outer margin of "frosted" white; irregular postmedian line is white. Outer half of hindwing is "frosted" light gray.
Wing Span: 7/8 - 1 1/8 inches (2.2 - 2.9 cm).
Life History: Males perch on plants in sunny clearings and low spots to look for females. Eggs are laid singly on leaf buds or flower pedicels. Chrysalids hibernate.
Flight: One flight from April-June.
Caterpillar Hosts: Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) in the heath family (Ericaceae); probably trailing arbutus (Epigaea repens).
Adult Food: Nectar from flowers including leatherleaf, pyxie, wild strawberry, and willow.
Habitat: Open sunny glades in barrens, rocky ridges, dunes, forest edges, adjacent to bogs.
Range: Very local distribution. Maine south to New Jersey, south in Appalachians to Virginia; west across Great Lakes states and southern prairie provinces; north to Alaska. Along Pacific Coast to northern California; south in Rocky Mountains to northern New Mexico.
Conservation: Not usually required.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None reported.
Comments: NULL
Get your BAMONA Gear!
Please donate!
We depend on donations to keep Butterflies and Moths of North America freely available. We want to express our gratitude to all who showed their support by making a contribution this year. You can donate to support this project at any time.
Advertise with us!
Do you have a product or service that you think would interest BAMONA users? If you would like to advertise on this website, contact us by email, or use the contact form and select the "Advertising" category.
Verified Sightings
Displaying 121 - 144 of 472 verified sightings

Observation date: Apr 25, 2009
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matt Pelikan)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: Apr 27, 2002
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matt Pelikan)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 06, 2011
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matt Pelikan)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 05, 1997
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Jackie Sones)
Region: Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: Apr 21, 2003
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matt Pelikan)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: Apr 30, 2011
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matt Arey)
Region: Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 01, 1999
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Alison Rob+Tor Hansen+Jakie Sones)
Region: Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: Apr 29, 2001
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matt Pelikan)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 24, 2008
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (MBC(Murray+Nielsen))
Region: Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 15, 1999
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Allan Keith)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 05, 2005
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Allan Keith)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 02, 2010
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Bo Zaremba)
Region: Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 28, 1998
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matt Pelikan)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 12, 1994
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Richard Forster)
Region: Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 14, 1992
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Brian Cassie)
Region: Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 05, 2004
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Alison Robb)
Region: Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 03, 2007
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matthew Pelikan)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 09, 1999
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Alison Robb+Tor Hansen)
Region: Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: Apr 20, 2001
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matt Pelikan)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 14, 2008
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matt Pelikan)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: Apr 25, 1999
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Blair Nikula)
Region: Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 11, 2003
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matt Pelikan)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 30, 2006
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Tom Murray #)
Region: Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012

Observation date: May 12, 1998
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Matt Pelikan)
Region: Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: sharonstichter2 (MBC Recordkeeper)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2012
- ‹ previous
- 6 of 20
- next ›