Alabama Butterfly Atlas

Butterfly: Wingspan: 5/8 - 1 inch (1.59 – 2.54 cm) UPPER SURFACE (dorsal) Male: blue; thin black border. Female: lighter blue; wide dark gray borders. Hindwing with one small dark spot near bottom edge. UNDER SURFACE (ventral) Whitish; many thin gray bands and spots. Hindwing with two orange-rimmed, black, and metallic blue eyespots. White wing fringes.

ID Tip: A small, “zebra-striped” butterfly that lacks the white patch present on Cassius Blues’ ventral forewing.

Egg: Pale green turning white. Disc shaped. Deposited singly on host plant buds.

Caterpillar: Light green, brown, or reddish with bands and stripes. To some extent, color is determined by host flowers’ color.

Chrysalis: Pale golden brown with darker brown spotting and some striping.  Wingcases may or may not be lighter.

Marine Blues typically reside in the American Southwest and continue west to southern California but are known for their tendency to stray. They are multi-brooded and may establish small breeding colonies in areas where they have wandered. These typically die out at the end of the year. Marine Blues were not documented in Alabama until 2023. 

These small butterflies have a rapid, erratic flight pattern.  They sip at flowers and mud. Males patrol in search of females. Females lay single eggs on a variety of legumes.  Caterpillars eat buds and flowers; their color is somewhat determined by the color of the buds they ingest.  In the West, they are ant-tended.

Marine Blues have adapted to the use of Blue Plumbago, a commonly grown ornamental shrub from South Africa.  Their ability to use this as a caterpillar host may help to account for their success in colonizing areas outside their normal range.

Distribution and Abundance

A dot on the county map indicates that there is at least one documented record of the species within that county. In some cases, a species may be common throughout the county, in others it may be found in only a specific habitat. The High Count information shows the highest numbers recorded for this species as well as when and where they occurred.

The sightings bar graphs depict the timing of flight(s) within each of three geographic regions. Place your cursor on a bar within the graph to see the number of individuals recorded during that period.

The abundance calendar displays the total number of individuals recorded within each week of the month. Both the graphs and the calendar are on based data collection that began in 2000.

The records analyzed here are only a beginning. As more data is collected, these maps and graphs will paint a more accurate picture of distribution and abundance in Alabama. Submit your sightings to albutterflyatlas@gmail.com.

Sightings in the following counties: Baldwin, Mobile

  • Map Symbol for Recent Sightings Sightings in the past 5 years
  • Map Symbol for Semi-Recent Sightings Sightings in the past 5 - 10 years
  • Map Symbol for Old Sightings Sightings more than 10 years ago

High count(s):

  • 2 - Baldwin - 6/22/2023
  • 1 - Mobile - 6/18/2023
County Distribution Map

View county names by moving the mouse over a county or view a map with county names

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
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Habitat

Open areas that include weedy fields and urban gardens

Host and Nectar Plants

In other areas of the country, Marine Blues are reported to use a variety of legumes as well as cultivated Blue Plumbago/Leadwort (Plumbago auriculata).

No host plant has been documented in Alabama.