common name: great purple hairstreak; great blue hairstreak
scientific name: Atlides halesus (Cramer) (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae)
The great purple hairstreak, Atlides halesus (Cramer), is one of our most beautiful southern butterflies. Although it is most commonly known as the great purple hairstreak, it has no purple on it. The brilliant iridescent scales on the upper surface of the wings from which it gets its name are blue not purple.
The great purple hairstreak is found throughout the southern United States where its host plant is
found. It extends farther north along the eastern coast to New York. In the West, its southern
distribution extends into Mexico.
The wingspread of the adult is 14 to 24 mm. The upper sides of the wings are iridescent blue
with black borders. Each hind wing has two black tails (hairstreaks). The undersides of the wings
are brown with a series of white and yellow spots on the margin of the hind wings at the bases of
the tails. The undersides of the wings have three basal, bright red spots (one on the front and two
on the hind wings). The underside of the abdomen is bright red.
live adult
dorsal and ventral views, pinned adult
Mature larvae are green with a dense covering of short, fine light orange hairs.
larva
Pupae are dark brown mottled with black.
There are many flights from March to November in the northern part of the range and year round
in Florida and south Texas. Males perch on treetops during the afternoon to await the arrival of
females for mating. As with the other hairstreak butterflies, perching adults move their hind
wings up and down. The tails on the hind wings with their associated spots resemble a head. The
movement of the tails is believed to attract a potential predator's attention to that part of the
wings which then is torn away allowing the butterfly to escape.
Larvae feed only on plants of the parasitic mistletoe genus Phoradendron (Viscaceae
[=Loranthaceae]). When full-grown, larvae migrate from the mistletoe and pupate in crevices at
the base of the tree, under bark, or may wander onto adjacent buildings for pupation. Frequently,
pupae are parasitized by parasitoid wasp larvae or by tachinid fly larvae, and adult wasps or flies
emerge from the pupal case instead of the butterfly.
mistletoe
- Daniels JC. 2000. Butterflies 2: Butterflies of the Southeast. UF/IFAS. Card Set. SP 274.
- Gerberg EJ, Arnett RH. 1989. Florida Butterflies. National Science Publications, Inc.
Baltimore, MD.
- Opler PA, Krizek GO. 1984. Butterflies East of the Great Plains. The Johns Hopkins
University Press. Baltimore, MD.
- Opler PA, Malikul V. 1998. Eastern Butterflies. Peterson Field Guide Series. Houghton
Mifflin Company. New York.
- Scott JA. 1986. The Butterflies of North America. Stanford University Press. Stanford, CA.
Authors: Donald W. Hall and Jerry F. Butler, University of Florida
Photographs: Jerry F. Butler and Donald W. Hall, University of Florida
Project Coordinator: Thomas R. Fasulo, University of Florida
Publication Number: EENY-110
Publication Date: August 1999. Latest revision: June 2007.
Copyright 1999-2007 University of Florida
Featured Creatures
Department of Entomology and Nematology
Division of Plant Industry
Electronic Data Information Source