Fluturat e Shqipërisë
Butterflies of Albania

Sylvain Cuvelier =
Anila Paparisto =

Last update: 20.xii.2023

Lycaena alciphron / Purple-shot Copper
Flakëroshja verdhoshe
Lycaenidae - Lycaeninae

Lycaena alciphron (Rottemburg, 1775). TL: Berlin.

1a. Lycaena alciphron, distribution map. Historical data ; Additional data from the 2018 update ; New observations since the 2018 update.
1b. Lycaena alciphron ♂ upperside. Vermosh, Albania (© Sylvain Cuvelier)
1c. Lycaena alciphron ♂ lateral. Burrel, Albania (© Theo Garrevoet)
1d. Lycaena alciphron ♀ upperside. Romania (© Sylvain Cuvelier)
1e. Lycaena alciphron ♂ underside. Kolesjan, Albania (© Sylvain Cuvelier)

Description
♂♂
Small butterfly. Fw: 16-18 mm.
Ups: gleaming reddish-orange gc with blue violet suffusion, more expressed on fw.
Upf: dark spots in usual pattern, irregular postdiscal row (displaced in s4 and s5) can be faint or absent.
Uph: dark cell-bar, postdiscal spots can be vestigial.
Unf: pale orange, dark spots more complete.
Unh: pale grey gc, dark spots more complete, conspicuous orange submarginal band with tiny black dots on both sides.
♀♀
Similar size.
Ups: more to completely dark brown gc.
Upf: dark spots in usual pattern, irregular postdiscal row (displaced in s4 and s5)
Uph: pronounced orange submarginal band.
Unf: pale orange, dark spots more complete.
Unh: pale grey gc, dark spots more complete, conspicuous orange submarginal band with tiny black dots on both sides.

Similar species

Lycaena candens Size:similar. ♂♂ Upf: bright orange-red gc, dark violet costa. Upf: only a discal black dot. Uph: strong violet reflections on dark border. Unf: black pd spots in nearly evenly curved row. ♀♀ Upf: black pd spots in nearly evenly curved row. Upf: pale orange gc, sometimes almost entirely brown suffusion. Uph: no postdiscal spots. Unf: black pd spots in nearly evenly curved row. Unh: orange submarginal band less continuous with slightly larger black dots on both sides.

Life cycle
Adults: single generation from June to early August (depending on altitude)
Egg: short stage.
Caterpillar: young caterpillar overwinters and feeds during spring.
Pupa: short stage.

Habitat
Lycaena alciphron inhabits flowery meadows from lowland to 2000 m a.s.l.
Spatial requirement moderate, population density low.

Foodplants
Caterpillars feed onRumex acetosa, R. acetosella, R. pulcher, R. scutatus and R. thyrsiflorus.
Butterflies feed on a variety of flowers.

Distribution
Albania: widespread in the mountains.
Balkan: AL - BG - BIH - GR - HR - NMK - MNE - RKS - RO - SLO - SRB
Europe: IB - IT - ALP - BAL - NWE* - UK - SCA - EEU
Asia Minor, Transcaucasia, Caucasus and further east.

Conservation status
Lycaena alciphron is not endangered.
Albanian Red List: NE.
IUCN Red List, category at the Mediterranean level: LC.

Useful links
Pyrgus.de
Lepiforum
Euroleps_1
Euroleps_2

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