American Copper
Lycaena phlaeas (Linnaeus, 1761)
Family: Lycaenidae
Subfamily: Lycaeninae
Identification: Upper surface of forewing shiny, fiery orange-red with black spots; hindwing gray with orange-red outer margin. Underside gray; hindwing with submarginal row of orange-red zigzags.
Wing Span: 7/8 - 1 3/8 inches (2.2 - 3.5 cm).
Life History: Males perch on grass or weeds to look for females. Eggs are laid singly on host plant stems or leaves. Young caterpillars chew holes in the underside of leaves; older ones make channels in the leaf tissue. Chrysalids overwinter.
Flight: One flight from July-September for alpine and arctic populations. Two flights in the north from June-July and August-September; three flights in the south from April-September.
Caterpillar Hosts: Herbs of the buckwheat (Polygonaceae) family including sheep sorrel (Rumex acetosella), curled dock (Rumex crispus), and Oxyria digyna.
Adult Food: Nectar from many flowers including common buttercup, white clover, butterflyweed, yarrow, ox-eye daisy, and various composites.
Habitat: In disturbed places in the East including pastures, landfills, vacant lots, road edges, old fields; rocky places in alpine habitats, and tundra in the arctic.
Range: Nova Scotia south to Georgia, Tennessee, and Arkansas; west across Great Lake states to North Dakota. Native populations found in the Arctic and the western mountains. Comments: Eastern and midwest populations probably result from an introduction from Scandinavia during the colonial period.
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.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 49 - 72 of 6474 verified sightings
Observation date: Aug 11, 2006
Submitted by: lizmcd
Region: Garrett County, Maryland, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Mar 14, 2023
Observation date: Jun 07, 2019
Submitted by: tylerjkrul
Region: Denali, Alaska, United States
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Feb 07, 2023
Observation date: Aug 05, 2021
Submitted by: hockeybruce7
Region: Monroe County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Feb 04, 2023
Observation date: Jul 14, 2020
Submitted by: hockeybruce7
Region: Monroe County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Feb 04, 2023
Observation date: Aug 19, 2022
Submitted by: J_Martineau
Region:
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: Jan 05, 2023
Observation date: Sep 17, 2022
Submitted by: pgrew1@unl.edu
Region: Penobscot County, Maine, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 20, 2022
Observation date: Aug 26, 2022
Submitted by: jwileyrains
Region: Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Sep 06, 2022
Observation date: Jun 03, 2022
Submitted by: Ed Rothwell
Region: Kalkaska County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Aug 31, 2022
Observation date: Jul 05, 2022
Submitted by: Kzfisherman
Region: Wexford County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Aug 30, 2022
Observation date: Jul 07, 2022
Submitted by: Kzfisherman
Region: Wexford County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Aug 30, 2022
Observation date: May 21, 2022
Submitted by: Jennie Lanzendorf
Region: Sauk County, Wisconsin, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Aug 25, 2022
Observation date: Aug 21, 2022
Submitted by: TJ in Derry
Region: Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 21, 2022
Observation date: Jul 22, 2022
Submitted by: jhdwelly
Region: Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jul 23, 2022
Observation date: Jul 16, 2022
Submitted by: Rjfischer
Region: Wayne County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 17, 2022
Observation date: Jun 15, 2022
Submitted by: BeaLaporte
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jul 03, 2022
Observation date: Jun 07, 2022
Submitted by: rhedden
Region: Rensselaer County, New York, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jun 08, 2022
Observation date: May 25, 2022
Submitted by: BarbSendelbach
Region: Saratoga County, New York, United States
Verified by: BarbSendelbach
Verified date: Jun 06, 2022
Observation date: May 30, 2022
Submitted by: Eric Hartshaw
Region: Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jun 01, 2022
Observation date: May 12, 2022
Submitted by: ian pepper
Region: Essex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: May 19, 2022
Observation date: Apr 30, 2022
Submitted by: jhdwelly
Region: Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: May 07, 2022
Observation date: Sep 05, 2021
Submitted by: Bob Jacobson
Region: Chippewa County, Wisconsin, United States
Verified by: Tom Middagh
Verified date: Apr 11, 2022
Observation date: Jun 21, 2020
Submitted by: lassa8
Region: Montgomery County, Maryland, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Apr 06, 2022
Observation date: Apr 03, 2022
Submitted by: lassa8
Region: Montgomery County, Maryland, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Apr 05, 2022
Observation date: Sep 27, 2018
Submitted by: achterv_DE18
Region: Nova Scotia, Canada
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Feb 27, 2022
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