Tailed Copper
Lycaena arota (Boisduval, 1852)
Family: Lycaenidae
Subfamily: Lycaeninae
Identification: Each hindwing of both sexes has a tail. Upper surface of male copper-brown with iridescent purple sheen; female with orange and dark brown pattern. Underside of both sexes gray; forewing with black spots, hindwing with black scrawls and a band of submarginal white crescents.
Wing Span: 1 1/8 - 1 3/8 inches (3 - 3.5 cm).
Life History: Males perch in open areas, often near watercourses or ravines, in the morning to watch for females. Eggs are laid singly on host plant or on debris under it, and hibernate until the following spring. Caterpillars eat leaves.
Flight: One flight from May-August.
Caterpillar Hosts: Leaves of gooseberry and currant (Ribes species) in the Grossulariaceae family.
Adult Food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Open mixed woodland, sagebrush, chaparral.
Range: New Mexico north and west to Oregon, south to southern California and Baja California.
Conservation: Clouded copper, subspecies nubila, has greatly declined in the vicinity of Los Angeles, California. Lycaena arota nubila has The Nature Conservancy rank of T1 - Critically imperiled because of extreme rarity (5 or fewer occurrences, or very few remaining individuals), or because of some factor of its biology making it especially vulnerable to extinction. (Critically endangered throughout its range).
NCGR:
Management Needs: Conserve remaining habitat of clouded copper. Consider habitat rehabilitation and reintroduction.
Comments: NULL
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 49 - 72 of 391 verified sightings
Observation date: Aug 11, 2020
Submitted by: Rozelle Wright
Region: Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 13, 2020
Observation date: Aug 04, 2020
Submitted by: eppierce
Region: Lander County, Nevada, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Aug 09, 2020
Observation date: Jul 29, 2020
Submitted by: Lisahug
Region: Modoc County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Aug 02, 2020
Observation date: Jul 17, 2020
Submitted by: topper72
Region: Los Alamos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 19, 2020
Observation date: Jul 15, 2020
Submitted by: natvisions
Region: New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 19, 2020
Observation date: Jul 14, 2020
Submitted by: Thomlinson
Region: Los Angeles County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 15, 2020
Observation date: Jun 18, 2020
Submitted by: Brynne Bryan
Region: Los Angeles County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jun 20, 2020
Observation date: Aug 02, 2019
Submitted by: stevecary
Region: New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jan 30, 2020
Observation date: Aug 06, 2019
Submitted by: ncrosbyrd
Region: Gunnison County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Dec 31, 2019
Observation date: Jul 30, 2019
Submitted by: ncrosbyrd
Region: El Paso County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Dec 31, 2019
Observation date: Aug 04, 2019
Submitted by: Thomlinson
Region: Jefferson County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Oct 05, 2019
Observation date: Aug 17, 2019
Submitted by: Reneerob17
Region: Torrance County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 22, 2019
Observation date: Aug 10, 2019
Submitted by: MAKI
Region: Nevada, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Aug 14, 2019
Observation date: Jul 20, 2019
Submitted by: Reneerob17
Region: Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 01, 2019
Observation date: Jul 04, 2019
Submitted by: ezeemonee
Region: Los Angeles County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 14, 2019
Observation date: Jun 19, 2019
Submitted by: ezeemonee
Region: Trinity County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jun 27, 2019
Observation date: Aug 11, 2018
Submitted by: Scott Burgess
Region: Humboldt County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: May 29, 2019
Observation date: Aug 30, 2018
Submitted by: MAKI
Region: Inyo County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Sep 01, 2018
Observation date: Aug 06, 2018
Submitted by: Robert Gorman
Region: Mono County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Aug 15, 2018
Observation date: Jul 27, 2018
Submitted by: dbrudin
Region: Saguache County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Aug 13, 2018
Observation date: Aug 09, 2018
Submitted by: Jim and Debby
Region: Siskiyou County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Aug 09, 2018
Observation date: Aug 18, 2017
Submitted by: glennfine
Region: Siskiyou County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 13, 2018
Observation date: Jun 16, 2018
Submitted by: ncrosbyrd
Region: Los Angeles County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jun 28, 2018
Observation date: Jun 08, 2018
Submitted by: Robert Gorman
Region: Orange County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jun 25, 2018
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