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Species
Spotlight

Giant Silk
Moth Survey

BOG COPPER (Lycaena epixanthe)

Identification
Male is dark brown above with a purplish sheen and few black spots. Female is gray-brown above with a light purplish sheen and more prominent black spots. Underside (of both sexes) is creamy yellow to grayish-white with small, black dots and a thin red-orange zigzag submarginal band.

Massachusetts Butterfly Club photographs

Kaufman's Butterflies of North America, page 84
Glassberg's Butterflies Through Binoculars, plate 14

Habitat in Vermont
Cranberry bogs

Host Plant
Large Cranberry (Vaccinium microcarpa) in southern portion of range; Small Cranberry (Vaccinium oxycoccos) farther north.

Adult Food Preferences
Nectar from cranberry flowers and other bog flowers.

U.S. Distribution

VBS Distribution

VBS Flight Period



Notes
This gem is one of Vermont’s smallest butterflies. And you won’t find it unless you’re in a bog with cranberries. Once you learn to separate this copper from any small moths also flying, it isn’t hard to find. It is weak in flight but lands often to nectar or rest, mostly with wings folded closed.

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