King's Hairstreak
Satyrium kingi (Klots & Clench, 1952)
Family: Lycaenidae
Subfamily: Theclinae
Identification: Hindwing with 1 long and 1 short tail. Underside light brown; hindwing margin indented above second tail; tail-spot blue with an orange cap.
Wing Span: 1 1/8 - 1 1/2 inches (3 - 3.8 cm).
Life History: Eggs are laid singly on host twigs and hatch the next spring. Caterpillars feed on leaf buds and leaves.
Flight: One flight from May-July.
Caterpillar Hosts: Common sweetleaf (Symplocos tinctoria), the only North American native of the sweetleaf family (Symplocaceae).
Adult Food: Allegheny chinquapin and sourwood are the only reported nectar sources.
Habitat: Hardwood hammocks, wooded streams, swamp edges.
Range: Maryland south along the Atlantic coastal plain and Gulf states, west to eastern Texas.
Conservation: Listed as a species of special concern in several states. Populations and their habitats should be conserved where found.
NCGR: G3 - Very rare or local throughout its range or found locally in a restricted range (21 to 100 occurrences). (Threatened throughout its range).
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 1 - 24 of 178 verified sightings
Observation date: May 26, 2023
Submitted by: dvollmar
Region: Leon County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 14, 2024
Observation date: May 16, 2024
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Charleston County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Jun 02, 2024
Observation date: May 22, 2024
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Charleston County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: May 23, 2024
Observation date: May 21, 2023
Submitted by: IronShikra
Region: Leon County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: May 25, 2023
Observation date: Jun 18, 2022
Submitted by: Julius
Region: Polk County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Aug 22, 2022
Observation date: Jun 21, 2022
Submitted by: Tommie Rogers
Region: Polk County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Aug 22, 2022
Observation date: Jul 03, 2022
Submitted by: Markburlinson
Region: Horry County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Jul 04, 2022
Observation date: Jun 14, 2022
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 16, 2022
Observation date: Jun 14, 2022
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 16, 2022
Observation date: Jun 14, 2022
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 16, 2022
Observation date: Jun 14, 2022
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 16, 2022
Observation date: Jun 14, 2022
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: Winn Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 16, 2022
Observation date: May 12, 2018
Submitted by: Mark Salvato
Region: Calhoun County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Nov 19, 2021
Observation date: Jun 15, 2021
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 19, 2021
Observation date: Jun 13, 2021
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 19, 2021
Observation date: Jun 13, 2021
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 19, 2021
Observation date: Jun 15, 2016
Submitted by: tom howe
Region: Swain County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Dec 09, 2020
Observation date: Jun 05, 2018
Submitted by: willstuart2001
Region: Scotland County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Dec 07, 2020
Observation date: May 07, 2020
Submitted by: Jeff Trahan
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Sep 03, 2020
Observation date: May 19, 2020
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Sep 03, 2020
Observation date: May 30, 2020
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Sep 03, 2020
Observation date: May 28, 2020
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Berkeley County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: May 31, 2020
Observation date: May 24, 2020
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe (Wendy Allen)
Region: Berkeley County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: May 28, 2020
Observation date: May 14, 2020
Submitted by: ncrosbyrd
Region: Chatham County, Georgia, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: May 15, 2020
- 1 of 8
- next ›