Ceraunus Blue

A tiny little Ceraunus Blue (Hemiargus ceraunus) landed on some pine needles at my feet when I happened to have a camera. These diminutive butterflies different coloration for males and females. Males have a beautiful shimmery blue upper wing and a mottled brown under wing and females have a less flashy brown upper wing that has a dusting of blue at the wing bases. Species in Florida only have one large dot on the margin of their hind wing but western members of the species may have two tiny eyespots.

These equally tiny larvae of this butterfly can be found munching on woody members of the legume family such as partridge pea (Cassia brachiata), mesquite (Prosopis species), and rosary pea (Abrus precatorius).