Eastern Baton Blue

Pseudophilotes vicrama (Moore, 1865)

Status

Description

A small blue butterfly, with chequered fringes. The underside is quite distinctive, being pale grey with black spots over the whole wing. There are a series of small orange submarginal spots. In Corfu the butterfly should not be confused with any other species. Male and female are similar, with the female being a darker blue upperside.

Habitat Requirements

Maquis and garrigue, particularily dry habitats.

Larval Foodplants

Crown Vetch Securigera varia - not on Corfu, Savory Satureja cuneifolia, Pink Savory Satureja thymbra (pale pink flowers), Thymus holosericeus.

Observations

Possibly the smallest butterfly species yet recorded by CBC members on Corfu and so is not always easy to find. It has been recorded in the Corfu Lake district, Dassia and Loutses, in habitat that appears to support only small populations.

*The information provided in the tables below is based on verified sightings of the Eastern Baton Blue submitted via this website since 1st January 2021.

First and Last Sightings

Year First Last/latest # Days
2023 05/05/2023 30/06/2023 56 days
2022 26/04/2022 02/07/2022 67 days
2021 12/05/2021 29/06/2021 48 days

Number of Observations

Year Number of observations
2023 19
2022 20
2021 20
Grand Total 59

Distribution Map

Distribution maps for this species are currently unavailable.

Flight Times for the Eastern Baton Blue (2023)

The chart below shows flight data by month for 2023

Flight Times for the Eastern Baton Blue (All Data)

The chart below shows flight data by month since 1st January 2021

Taxonomy

  • Vernacular/Common Name: Eastern Baton Blue
  • Family: Lycaenidae (Leach, 1815)
  • Sub-family: Polyommatinae (Swainson 1831)
  • Tribe: Polyommatini (Swainson 1831)
  • Sub-tribe: Scolitantidina (Hübner, [1819])
  • Genus: Pseudophilotes (Beuret, 1958)
  • Species: vicrama (Moore, 1865)

References

For a list of references, please see our bibliography page.