TMB photos - Blues

[JKT]

The editing took awhile, but it is finally done. Here are a few blues for ID / verification.

The first batch doesn't have much blue in it, though. Is the middle one P. eumedon? The first and last have my guess in the file name.

[JKT]

The first picture shows a group, which I presume to be C. minimus, though there may be something larger lurking in the background. The second is a bit of mystery. It had bright blue wings and I presumed it to be C. osiris, but is it that much bigger than C. minimus? The last is probably one more P. icarus...

[JKT]

And the last one looks a lot like P. semiargus. Then there is the P. malvoides, but is the one on the right the same? It looks bigger, but it may be the angle.

[Roger Gibbons]

A very quick look, just inspection without analysis: 1625 looks good for eumedon (female?). 1637 is clearly Aricia, probably artaxerxes, but I am not sure the forewing apex is sufficiently pointed (is this only important if it is a male?) , so agestis is also possible. 1519 may well be the same, a female, and the extent of the orange lunules looks right for female artaxerxes (not extensive enough for female agestis). The suggestion of blue scales would point toward female icarus, but the strongish upf discoidal spot pushes me toward artaxerxes.

1619 looks good for osiris. It has the right feel and the basal blue flush would tend to confirm it. 1688 look right for icarus, but always hard to be sure with worn specimens.

1711 is certainly semiargus. The two (three) Pyrgus are almost certainly malvoides. The uph discal marks look trademark malvoides as do the submarginal marks. The colouring and upf marks look right too.

Roger

[Padfield]

Agreed on all except the first one, which I would say is not Aricia. There are blue scales on many parts of the wings and the margins are not sufficiently chequered. It's way too early in the morning to guess what it is, though. I also think eumedon is a bit speculative - it might be, but it's not certain from that view, to me at any rate!

Guy

[JKT]

Thanks to both of You!

If not eumedon, then what others would fit? The green sheen is particularly interesting.

[Jack Harrison]

Thanks to both of You!

You with a capital “Y” no less. Roger and Guy are now apparently elevated to the divine. They might have super-natural intuition, but.........

Jack

[Padfield]

I don't mind the elevation to divinity in the slightest, Jack.

I favour female icarus for the first picture. It's not unusual for this to show a dark spot on the upperside forewing - my last icarus of 2010 had one:


(Long distance shot! 14th November 2010)

I also agree eumedon is the most likely candidate for the 1625 - I just wouldn't put a firm ID on a single upperside photo. What was the altitude and date? If it is a female, female nicias is a possibility, though this flies later and higher than eumedon. If it is eumedon, it might well be a male. Side views of the abdomen can be misleading, and that does look long enough for a male. The blue-green patina is found on several species, including osiris and semiargus, though I don't think this is either of those.

Guy

[JKT]

I'll mark the first down as icarus with a small reservation for artaxerxes.

The date for the likely eumedon is 1st of July and the height 1900 +- 100. It was on the path down from La Peule. I think it is too early for nicias if their difference is anything like it is in Finland.

It sounds like the capital letter means a bit different things in different languages and I mixed the meanings a bit...

[Roger Gibbons]

Having had a closer look, I feel 1625 is a very strong candidate for eumedon. The cold brown colouring looks to me like a sure pointer. I have only seen one female nicias but it was warmer brown than this. I don’t think there are any other options, apart from a female semiargus and the colouring and body length don't look right for this. Eumedon is usually not difficult to ID as it is nearly always sitting on a Geranium of some sort. I don’t think I have ever seen eumedon when it isn’t, it being one of those species that seems glued to the larval hostplant.

Re 1519 when I looked originally I was preoccupied with the lunules and the few blue scales there, and even that raised doubts about Aricia. Having had a proper look, the basal area is peppered with blue scales which as Guy says rules out Aricia.

When my name invokes a deity it is invariably of the OMG variety (Oh my God!, or omigod, in case it doesn't translate into Finnish, a term expressing a less than divine sentiment).

Roger

[Jack Harrison]

JKT was a little confused about the English use of capitals.

We would write:
“Guy walked up the mountain where he gave a talk about butterflies” with just a small “h” in he.

Some religious groups always use a capital letter in connection with their particular deity. For example:
“Jesus walked up the mountain and where He gave a sermon” with the capital “H”

In the earlier part of the thread, Guy and Roger were referred to as You with the capital “Y”. I jokingly suggested that this had elevated them to the status of gods.

Jack

[Padfield]

In Switzerland, eumedon is a regular at minerals, where it messes in with the other blues. It is usually present in ones and twos, not en masse.



Guy

[Paul]

Here's a couple for comparison... eumedon vs semiargus...





quite similar aren't they.

PS... never seen nicias