Palos Verdes blue
| Palos Verdes blue | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Lycaenidae |
| Genus: | Glaucopsyche |
| Species: | G. lygdamus |
| Subspecies: | G. l. palosverdesensis |
| Trinomial name | |
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Glaucopsyche lygdamus palosverdesensis |
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The Palos Verdes blue (Glaucopsyche lygdamus palosverdesensis) is a small endangered butterfly native to the Palos Verdes Peninsula in southwest Los Angeles County, California, United States. As its distribution has been proven to be limited to one single site it has one of the best claims to being the world's rarest butterfly.
The Palos Verdes blue (G. l. palosverdesensis) is a localized subspecies of the silvery blue (G. lygdamus). It was described in 1977, shortly before it became one of the second groups of butterflies to be listed under the US Endangered Species Act in 1980. It is distinguished from other subspecies of G. lygdamus by its slightly different patterning on the underside of the wing and an earlier flight period. The subspecies was described from the southern slope of the Palos Verdes Peninsula in coastal Los Angeles County.
The Palos Verdes blue butterfly was thought to be driven to extinction in 1983, primarily by development of its habitat. The last three to six known individuals were seen and photographed in March, 1983, but the site they occupied was scraped shortly after for fire control. Then, in 1994, the butterfly was rediscovered by Rick Rogers, Rudi Mattoni, and Timothy Dahlum at the Defense Fuel Support Point in San Pedro, which is located on the northern (inland) side of the Palos Verdes Peninsula. This new population lays eggs on an additional food plant (common deerweed, Lotus scoparius) but shares physical and behavioral characteristics with the other now-extinct populations.
Glaucopsyche lygdamus palosverdesensis, is a subspecies of the G. lygdamus (silvery blue) species of butterfly found throughout North America. There are currently 11 subspecies of silvery blue. G. lygdamus palosverdesensis was first described in the 1970s and was distinguished from other G. lygdamus by its faster and early flight, wing color and wing spot patterns.
The Palos Verdes blue butterfly has a wingspan of only 25–30 mm. The male has a bright silvery-blue dorsal wing outlined in a narrow line of black, while the female's dorsal wing is a more brownish-gray colour. Both males and females have gray ventral wings with dark spots surrounded by white rings.
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