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Small Copper


Small Copper
Photo Information
Copyright: Gert Paassen (Gert-Paassen) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 507 W: 2 N: 2036] (6396)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2006-07-26
Categories: Insects
Photo Version: Original Version
Date Submitted: 2008-07-12 22:54
Viewed: 383
Points: 24
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note [Dutch]
Today a very wide spread butterfly in europe and Some area in africa ad north America.

Latin name - Lycaena phlaeas


Attributes of Lycaena phlaeas

Family: Gossamer-wing Butterflies (Lycaenidae)

Subfamily: Coppers (Lycaeninae)

Identification: Upper surface of forewing shiny, fiery orange-red with black spots; hindwing gray with orange-red outer margin. Underside gray; hindwing with submarginal row of orange-red zigzags.

Life history: Males perch on grass or weeds to look for females. Eggs are laid singly on host plant stems or leaves. Young caterpillars chew holes in the underside of leaves; older ones make channels in the leaf tissue. Chrysalids overwinter.

Flight: One flight from July-September for alpine and arctic populations. Two flights in the north from June-July and August-September; three flights in the south from April-September.

Wing span: 7/8 - 1 3/8 inches (2.2 - 3.5 cm).

Caterpillar hosts: Herbs of the buckwheat (Polygonaceae) family including sheep sorrel (Rumex acetosella), curled dock (Rumex crispus), and Oxyria digyna.

Adult food: Nectar from many flowers including common buttercup, white clover, butterflyweed, yarrow, ox-eye daisy, and various composites.

Habitat: In disturbed places in the East including pastures, landfills, vacant lots, road edges, old fields; rocky places in alpine habitats, and tundra in the arctic.

Range: Nova Scotia south to Georgia, Tennessee, and Arkansas; west across Great Lake states to North Dakota. Native populations found in the Arctic and the western mountains. Comments: Eastern and midwest populations probably result from an introduction from Scandinavia during the colonial period.

The main foodplants are Common Sorrel (Rumex acetosa) and Sheep's Sorrel (Rumex acetosella). Broad-leaved Dock (Rumex obtusifolius) is also used.

This butterfly favours open land where nectar sources and foodplant are found. Such habitats include grassland, wasteland, heathland, old quarries, embankments, road verges and woodland rides.

Eggs are laid singly, usually on the underside of a leaf of the foodplant. The egg is white when first laid, gradually become grey before the larva emerges. This stage lasts approximately 6 days.

On emergence, the larva does not eat the eggshell and forms a groove from which it feeds, on the underside of the leaf. Several grooves are made by the larva as it feeds on different parts of the leaf. The upper surface of the leaf remains intact, and these grooves appear as transparent areas of the leaf from above. Those larvae that overwinter do so in one of the first 3 instars, attached to a pad of silk on the foodplant, such as on leaf or leaf stem. There are 4, sometimes 5, instars. The fully-grown larva is approximately 16mm in length.

The larva leaves its foodplant to pupate low down in the vegetation, possibly on a dried leaf. The pupa is attached by a silken girdle and the cremaster. The pupa is approximately 10mm in length.

This sun-loving butterfly is often found resting on the ground, vegetation or flowers, absorbing the sun’s rays. It flies up to intercept any passing butterfly.
Art_R, siggi, haraprasan, Argus, uleko, claudine, CeltickRanger, jaycee, goldyrs has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

  • Great 
  • Art_R Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 201 W: 16 N: 483] (1995)
  • [2008-07-12 23:37]

Hi Gert , very nice butterfly photo , I like the very rich colors , also very good composition , point of view, and details , thanks for sharing
regards
Art

  • Great 
  • Arjun Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 307 W: 3 N: 783] (3692)
  • [2008-07-12 23:39]

hi gert,
lovely picture.nice composition.good pov
tfs

Spot on Gert,, excellent background, the butterfly has great colours and detail. POV and DoF, both excellent...good work tfs, regards h

  • Great 
  • foozi Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 358 W: 0 N: 368] (1473)
  • [2008-07-13 1:10]

Hello Gert,
another great shot of the butterfly. Nice and lear colours and sharp image of the insect.
Great Bg to give a great impact to the phot.

regards,
Foozi

  • Great 
  • siggi Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 467 W: 11 N: 1322] (4632)
  • [2008-07-13 1:48]

Hello Gerd,
Nice and sharp capture of this beautiful butterfly. Brilliant colours.
Regards Siggi

Hi Gert,
A lovely capture of this beautiful butterfly. Superb details and a lovely composition. Thanks a lot for sharing.

  • Great 
  • Argus Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2757 W: 147 N: 7955] (24769)
  • [2008-07-13 4:22]

Hello Gert,
A very nice macro of a Small Copper butterfly, showing the underside of the wings with fine sharpness and detail from a great POV. Excellent composition on the thistle flower too.
TFS this beauty from your archives,
Ivan

  • Great 
  • uleko Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2580 W: 170 N: 7866] (24875)
  • [2008-07-13 4:49]

Hello Gert,
Lovely capture of the Small Copper in a nice pose on the Thistle. The fine details and colours really show up against the dark background. Well done!
Many thanks and regards, Ulla

Hi Gert,
This is another very nice capture of a lovely specie. Composition is perfect with good details and exposure. I envy you people who are able to shot butterflies... I don't know where ours are at the moment... Thanks,
Claudine

hello Gert

another one of your butterfly photos and more and more beautiful,
very fine POV, DOF and framing, excellent sharpness and details,
and comparing the background of this image with your last one's,
i love much more the green vegetation colored background of this image, TFS

Asbed

  • Great 
  • jaycee Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1904 W: 8 N: 4959] (16025)
  • [2008-07-13 10:20]

Hi Gert,

Beautiful once again. A perfect pose showing the underside of the wings. Lovely colors and fine details. Excellent background and composition on the thistle. I think our butterflies are with Claudine's.

Jane

This macro of the Small Copper is very balanced, overall.The sharpness is perfect, as is the light!
Goldy

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