Marsyas Hairstreak

Pseudolycaena marsyas

"Pseudolycaena marsyas", common name Cambridge Blue or Giant Hairstreak or Marsyas Hairstreak, is a species of butterflies in the family Lycaenidae.
Pseudolycaena marsyas - Turquesa / Marsyas Hairstreak (Linnaeus, 1758) Lepidoptera: Bombycina: Papilionoidea: Lycaenidae: Theclinae: Eumaeini Wingspan: 40mm to 50mm. Other names: Cambridge Blue, Giant Hairstreak The adults are found in weedy areas and are often sighted in gardens in anthropic regions. This includes forests and woods. The larvae are found wherever the host plants are and the species occur. This Pseudolycaena marsyas was sighted in a garden in a backwater town. These butterflies are distributed as follows: Brazil, Mexico, Panama and Trinidad-Tobago until Argentina; Saint Vincent; Guyana; Ecuador (Napo, Pastaza) and Northwestern Peru (Huánuco). They belong in the order Lepidoptera, superfamily Papilionoidea, family Lycaenidae, subfamily Theclinae and tribe Eumaeini. The curved filamentous extensions on the wings are used to confuse predators and avoid predation. These extensions mimic antennae, fooling predators into thinking that's where the butterfly's head is. Thanks to this defensive mechanism, in a worst case predation scenario, the butterfly will be left with partially damaged wings. The adults oviposit the eggs on the host plants. The larvae are poliphytophagous, and were registered feeding on many plants, including (but not limited to) Asterocarpus, Mangifera indica and Eugenia stipitata. Adults are normally seen feeding on the nectar of various flowers, minerals from the soil and fermenting fruit. The inner wings are colored a metallic blue, which varies in shadings between individuals. They are diurnal. Their wingspan is between 40 and 50mm. Animalia,Arthropoda,Brazil,Butterfly,Eumaeini,Geotagged,Giant Hairstreak,Insecta,Insects,Lepidoptera,Lycaenidae,Neotropical,Papilionoidea,Pseudolycaena marsyas,Rhophalocera,South America,Theclinae,animal,animals,insect

Appearance

"Pseudolycaena marsyas" has a wingspan of about 40–50 millimetres, a quite huge size in hairstreaks. The uppersides of the wings are usually metallic blue, with hues varying from cobalt blue to turquoise-blue depending on location. The apex of the wings are black and lightly falcade in males and the hindwings are tailed in both sexes, with a small black spot. The undersides of the wings are pale blue-greyish, with several black spots and thin markings.
Giant Hairstreak Geotagged,Pseudolycaena marsyas,Spring,Trinidad and Tobago,black,blue,grey,spots

Naming

Many forms varying in the hue of the blue but these are allocated to a single subspecies - "Pseudolycaena marsyas marsyas."
Marsyas Hairstreak (Pseudolycaena marsyas) Avatar Amazon Lodge, Loreto, Peru. Nov 20, 2022 Geotagged,Giant Hairstreak,Peru,Pseudolycaena marsyas,Spring

Distribution

This wide-ranging species occurs in Central and South America from Mexico up to Argentina, in semi-open forests at an elevation of about 0–1,000 metres above sea level.

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Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionArthropoda
ClassInsecta
OrderLepidoptera
FamilyLycaenidae
GenusPseudolycaena
SpeciesP. marsyas
Photographed in
Brazil
Peru
Trinidad and Tobago