The Pea Blue

Lampides boeticus

Description

The male Lampides boeticus has a dull purple-blue upper wing with two spots on the upper side of the hind wing, the female is brown with a pale blue wing base. The underside of the wing is pale yellowish brown with transverse white fasciae, black tornal spots crowned with orange with turquoise patches, and long white-tipped tail on the veins of the 2 hind wings.

Larva: Lampides boeticus larvae are green or reddish brown with a brown dorsal line and slanted white stripes on each side, wood-louse shaped.

Pupa: Pupa Lampides boeticus is yellowish white with black spots on the surface of the body arranged symmetrically around the dorsal line and other small, diffuse dots, typical lycaenid shape.

Population Size

-

Life Span

-

WEIGHT​

-

LENGTH

Wingspan from 25 - 32 mm.

Ar

Arboreal

He

Herbivore

Classification

KINGDOM

:

Animalia

PHYLUM

:

Arthropoda

CLASS

:

Insecta

ORDER

:

Lepidoptera

FAMILY

:

Lycaenidae

GENUS

:

Lampides

SPECIES

:

Lampides boeticus

Distribution

Boeticus lampides can be found in tropical rainforest areas and in cultivated areas in the hills.

Geography

Continent : Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia

Country : Boeticus lampides are distributed in Europe, Africa, South and Southeast Asia, Australia.

Habits and Lifestyle

Lampides boeticus can often be seen flying very rapidly in large numbers near the pods.

Lifestyle

Arboreal

Biome

Tropical rain forest

Climate Zone

Tropical

Diet and Nutrition

Lampides boeticus larvae feed on young leaves, pods and flowers of several species of Fabaceae, such as Crotalaria (Crotalaria retusa, Crotalaria mucronata), Medicago, Polygala, Sutherlandia, Dolichos, Cytisus, Spartium and Lathyrus.

Diet : Herbivore (larva), Nectarivore

Mating Habits

Lampides boeticus reproduce by laying eggs (ovipar), the eggs are laid separately in the flower buds of the host plant. Eggs are whitish in color with a greenish hue, disc-shaped

Life cycle (Metamorfosis) : Lampides boeticus caterpillar passes through 4 instars before pupating, its body is green or reddish brown. The pupal phase can occur in empty seed pods or leaf litter, the pupa is creamy brown with dark brown spots, the body is protected by a silk belt. After 6 days, the butterflies emerge from the pupa.

Reproduction session : –

Incubation periods: –

Independent age : at birth

Baby name : –

Baby carrying : –

Population

Population status : Not Evaluated (NE)

NE

DD

LC

NT

VU

EN

CR

EW

EX

PHOTO GALLERY

Reference

  1. Khoon, S. 2010. A Field Guide to The Butterflies of Singapore. Ink On Paper Communications, Singapore.
  2. Tan, H. and Khoon, K.S. 2012. Caterpillars of Singapore’s Butterflies. National Park Board, Singapore.
  3. Butterfly of the Month April 2018-The Pea Blue (Lampides boeticus) article 
  4. Lampides boeticus Linnaeus, 1767 article 
  5. Lampides boeticus on Wikipedia article