Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Lycaenidae
Genus: Hemiargus
Species: cearunus (Ceraunus Blue) (Fabricius, 1793)
Physical Description:
Upperside of male light blue with a darker narrow border ; female dark brown, often with wing bases blue. Underside gray; both wings with a row of dark postmedian dashes. Florida butterflies have one submarginal eyespot on hindwing ; Southwest butterflies have two.
Wing span: 3/4 - 1 1/8 inches (2 - 3 cm).
Habitat: Open woodland, desert scrub , dunes, pastures, road edges , gardens, and vacant lots.
Open places; fields , roadsides, woodland edges, etc. In coastal GA, where resident, it is found in dunes and other coastal habitats . To be looked for near low vegetation, where it stays close to the ground like an Eastern Tailed-Blue.
Open woodland, desert scrub, dunes, pastures, road edges, and vacant lots.
Diet:
Caterpillar hosts: A variety of woody legumes including partridge pea (Cassia brachiata), mesquite (Prosopis species), and rosary pea (Abrus precatorius).
Adult food: Flower nectar. Woody legumes are foodplants. Nectar plants are not well known.
Reproduction: Males patrol during warm hours of the day for receptive females. Eggs are laid singly on flower buds or leaves of host plant; caterpillars feed on flowers and seedpods.
