Strymon melinus
Size:
Wingspan is 7/8 - 1 1/4 inches.
Similar Species:
Red Banded
Hairstreak
White M Hairstreak
Habitat:
Varied. Can be found about anywhere. It enjoys sunny dry places. Our most
common hairstreak, it is found throughout the entire US.
Range/Abundance:
Common in most of the region. More common in coastal
regions.
Flight Period:
Adults fly from late March until late October in three broods with small
gaps between broods.
Larval Host Plants:
Mainly in the families of Legumes Fabaceae, mallows Malvaceae.
Including clovers Trifolium spp., bush clovers
Lespedeza spp., tick-trefoil Desmodium spp., mallows
Malva spp.,and vetches Vicia spp.
Comments:
This triple-brooded hairstreak can be found about anywhere on any flower.
Gray Hairstreak is the only hairstreak in our region that perches with
open wings.
You can sex Gray Hairstreaks by the color of the tip of the abdomen: orange
in males and gray in females.
The top photo was taken in Orange Co., NC on July 27, 2002. The second
photo was taken in Orange Co., NC on August 16, 2002. The third photo
was taken in Wake Co., NC on September 27, 2000. The bottom photo was
taken in Lenior Co., NC on May 26, 2003.
