Euchrysops barkeri, the Barker's smoky blue or Barker's Cupid, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae.

Barker's smoky blue
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Lycaenidae
Genus: Euchrysops
Species:
E. barkeri
Binomial name
Euchrysops barkeri
(Trimen, 1893)[1]
Synonyms
  • Lycaena barkeri Trimen, 1893

Description

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The wingspan is 26–32 mm for males and 27–33 mm for females. Adults are on wing year-round, but are most common from November to July in South Africa.[2]

Habitat and behavior

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It is found in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and from Sierra Leone to Tanzania. In South Africa it is found from the East Cape along the KwaZulu-Natal coast and in Limpopo province.

Life cycle

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The female oviposits at the stem of Sphenostylis angustifolia (Fabaceae). The egg is pale sky-blue wih a sparkling pearlescent lustre.[3]

The larvae feed on Crotalaria and Rhynchosia species and Vigna unguiculata.

References

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  1. ^ Euchrysops at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
  2. ^ Woodhall, Steve (2005). Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa. Cape Town, South Africa: Struik. ISBN 978-1-86872-724-7.
  3. ^ Woodhall, Steve (2009). "A new food plant record for Euchrysops barkeri (Trimen, 1893) Lycaenidae: Polyommatinae)" (PDF). Metamosphosis. 20 (1). The Lepidopterists' Society of Africa: 5.