Northern Metalmark (Calephelis borealis)

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Northern metalmark
Vulnerable
Vulnerable (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Clade: Pancrustacea
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Riodinidae
Genus: Calephelis
Species:
C. borealis
Binomial name
Calephelis borealis
(Grote & Robinson, 1866)[2]
Synonyms
  • Nymphidia borealis Grote & Robinson, 1866
  • Calephelis geda Scudder, 1876

Calephelis borealis, commonly known as the northern metalmark, is a butterfly of the family Riodinidae endemic to the United States.

Distribution and habitat

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One of the few representatives of the usually-tropical Riodinidae in eastern North America, it ranges through western Connecticut south through west-central Pennsylvania, as well as the central Appalachians and Ohio River Valley. Isolated populations are also found in southwest Missouri, Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma. The habitat consists of open woodland streams near serpentine, shale or limestone barrens.

Description

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The wingspan is 29–32 mm. Adults are on wing from mid-June to late July in one generation per year.

Diet

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The larvae feed on the leaves of Senecio obovatus and possibly Senecio aureus and Erigeron philadelphicus. Adults feed on nectar from flowers including butterflyweed, white sweet clover, goldenrod, ox-eye daisy, sneezeweed, and yarrow.[3]

The species overwinters in the larval stage in leaf litter.[citation needed]

Conservation

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The species is listed as endangered in the Connecticut by state authorities,[4] and vulnerable globally by The Nature Conservancy.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.107560/Calephelis_borealis
  2. ^ "Calephelis". Nic.funet.fi. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
  3. ^ "Northern Metalmark Calephelis borealis (Grote & Robinson, 1866) | Butterflies and Moths of North America". Butterfliesandmoths.org. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
  4. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 2017-11-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)


About

Rare and local in western Maryland, where most of my encounters with this species occurred. Host plant locally is Roundleaf Ragwort.

Relationships

No relationships added.