Blueberry is a butterfly with an unusual color. Blue butterfly. Lifestyle and habitat of the blueberry butterfly Notes on taxonomy

Bluebirds are one of the most numerous families among daytime butterflies. The main species diversity can be observed in the warm tropical zone; no more than 500 species are found in the temperate Palearctic region. Small insects with various colors settle on the edges of forests, meadows, and coastal thickets. In many regions, the blue butterfly is endangered. Representatives of the family - Arion, Davida, magnificent marshmallow - are listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation.

Blueberry butterflies

Family Characteristics

The blueberry family (Lycaenidae) includes more than 5 thousand species of butterflies. They can be found in all corners of the world, but the largest (up to 60 mm) and brightly colored moths live in the tropics. There are 500 species of small Lycaenidae butterflies common in the temperate zone. The wingspan of insects is 20-40 mm. The name of the family was chosen due to the bright blue color of the wings of butterflies. But among the many representatives of this group there are butterflies of red, brown, and orange colors.

Interesting fact. Some species of bluebirds have small thin tails on their hind wings. Among the Palaearctic inhabitants are the spotted chervonets, the pea blueberry, and the birch tree. In tropical species - atlideshalesus.

On the underside of the wings the color is gray, brown, brown or yellowish. Characteristic is a pattern of light bands and ocellated spots. Color changes occur among generations of the same year. They consist of the loss of eyes and edge patterns. The eyes turn into spots, additional dots appear, turning them into an exclamation mark. Usually transformations concern the autumn generation of butterflies.

The eyes of bluebirds are large, convex, in most cases surrounded by hairs, less often bare. The antennae are club-shaped, with an oval notch at their base. Of the three pairs of limbs, the forelimbs have the shortest length. There is one pair of spurs on the hind tibia.

Sexual dimorphism

The group of bluebirds is characterized by pronounced sexual dimorphism. The color of the wings of males is brighter than that of females. Females have muted shades of blue or red, with more dark elements. On the inside of the wings, the pattern of marginal spots is more pronounced in females. One of the significant differences is the structure of the forelimbs. The male's legs are underdeveloped, the tarsi are not divided into segments. Insects do not use them when walking, moving on all fours.

Caterpillar

Butterfly development occurs in four stages: egg, caterpillar, pupa, and adult. Blueberry caterpillars are short, with a convex back and a flat bottom. This type of structure is called wood lice. The head is small, body length no more than 20 mm. They feed on trees, bushes, and herbaceous plants. They lead a secretive lifestyle; their greenish body color helps them remain unnoticed.

Lifestyle and nutrition

Blueberries are diurnal butterflies; they are active in warm, clear weather. They feed on the nectar of flowers; to satisfy the need for microelements, they drink the secretions of aphids and bird excrement. Males exhibit territorial behavior. They aggressively defend their area not only from other butterflies, but also from wasps.

Many species are found locally. Blueberry colonies are limited to areas where caterpillar food plants grow. They are not inclined to migrate and fly in search of comfortable conditions. This feature negatively affects the number of insects. Due to factors disrupting their usual habitat, several species of bluebirds are on the verge of extinction.

Features of development

Female bluebirds lay eggs in flower buds. The caterpillars first feed on the food plant, then descend to the ground. Many species of Lycaenidae develop in close symbiosis with meadow ants. Caterpillars are able to secrete a sweet liquid that attracts ants and sound signals that control their behavior. The ants themselves bring alcon blueberries into their home, where the caterpillars feed on the larvae and pupae.

The pupae are short and thick. They are attached by a web-like belt to branches or leaves. In some species, pupation occurs on the ground, in an arachnoid cocoon.

Types of pigeons

Among the most interesting species of blueberries are the following:

David's (Neolycaenadavidi)

The David's blue butterfly is dark brown. Its wingspan is 30 mm. Insects are common in Altai, Transbaikalia, Mongolia, and northern China. Adults fly from late June to late July. They live in pine forests and on mountain slopes. Caterpillars develop on the deciduous caragana shrub. They are green in color with two light stripes on the back and oblique lines on the sides.

Interesting fact. The female lays eggs on the branches of a bush in the morning, covering the clutch with hairs from the abdomen.

The species is declining in numbers and is listed in the Red Book of Russia. The limiting factors are the destruction of fodder bushes by forest fires and livestock grazing.

Arion (Phengarisarion)

The Arion blue butterfly is common in Europe, Central Asia, and Western Siberia. The size of the insect is 20 mm, the main background of the wings is blue. There is a wide dark stripe along the perimeter, and there are black spots on the front wings. Butterflies inhabit mixed-grass meadows and are found in the foothills and on the edges of oak forests. Females lay eggs on thyme, but soon the caterpillars move to the nearest anthills.

Arion is a local species, in the Tula region it is listed in the Red Book. Insect populations are declining across Europe. The reason was the development of habitats and the destruction of symbiotic ant nests.

Zephyr is excellent

The species Protantigius superans or the superb marshmallow butterfly is an endemic inhabitant of the Far Eastern region. The wings are brown with white marginal spots, the wingspan is 40 mm. On the hind wings the tails are up to 6 mm. The butterfly lives in mixed forests. Excellent marshmallow is listed in the Red Book of Russia.

Raspberry plant (Callophrasrubi)

In sparse bushes, on the outskirts of swamps and the edges of broad-leaved forests, a small butterfly called the raspberry butterfly lives. The outer side of the wings is red-brown, but difficult to see. When at rest, adults fold their wings behind their back, displaying a greenish color that blends in with the surrounding vegetation. Summer is observed from late April to June. Adults stay in the crowns of trees and shrubs, leaving to feed on flowers.

Food plants for caterpillars: gorse, birch, broom, zoster, raspberry. The habitat of the species is the temperate part of Europe, North Africa, steppe and desert zones of the Caucasus.

Icarus (Polyomamatusicarys)

One of the most common species in Russia is the blue butterfly Icarus. Its wingspan is 25-30 mm. Males are gray-blue in color, with a narrow black stripe and light fringe along the edge of the wings. The butterfly's body is densely covered with long blue hairs. Females are brownish-brown with a blue coating and yellow marginal spots.

In the southern regions of Europe they are found from April to October, producing two to three generations per year. Females lay eggs on the petioles of young leaves of herbaceous plants - common ulcer, strawberries, alfalfa, sweet clover, and meadow clover. The larvae eat the leaves, starting from the edges. Icarus caterpillars have a symbiosis with ants. An adult caterpillar, sometimes a pupa, overwinters. Ants hide it in crevices or cracks in the soil.

Rhymnus (Neolicaenarhumnus)

The butterfly blue butterfly is found in Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan. Insects live in local populations in the steppes and foothills. The size of the wings is 20-25 mm, the upper part is brown, without a pattern. The underside is lighter, with white spots with black dots at the outer edge. The fringe is light. The tip of the club is orange. Adults fly in May-June. The butterfly is listed in the Red Book of Russia.

Buckthorn blueberry (Celastrina argiolus)

The spring blue butterfly or buckthorn blue butterfly is widely distributed in Europe, except in the regions of the far north. Found in Asia, China and North America. The wingspan is 25 mm, the upperparts are blue-blue, in females with a wide dark stripe along the edge. Two generations develop in a year. Butterflies can be found in forest clearings, in gardens and parks, on the banks of reservoirs, in open forests.

Females lay eggs on fruit trees. A week later, caterpillars appear, feeding on flowers, leaves and ovaries. Argioluses live on currants, buckthorn, raspberries, ivy, apple trees, and pears. Caterpillars come into contact with many species of ants. Blueberry argiolus - "little argus" has become the national butterfly of Finland.

Squad: Lepidoptera Family: Blueberries Subfamily: Polyommatinae Genus: Polyommatus View: Blueberry Icarus Latin name Polyommatus icarus (Rottemburg),

The length of the fore wing of the imago is 13-17 mm. Biology Depending on latitude, it develops in two to three generations. In the extreme south, for example, in the steppe zone of Ukraine and on the southern coast of Crimea, the development of the fourth is possible. In the south of Eastern Europe, adults are found almost continuously from early April to October. Females lay 1 egg on the upper side of the leaves of various herbaceous plants, sometimes at the petioles of young leaves, at the top of the stem or in the leaf sheath. Females often lay eggs on plants near anthills. Young caterpillars move to the underside of the leaf, eat the leaves from the edges, then destroy the leaf blades completely and come into contact with the ants Lasius flavus, L. alienus, L. niger, Formica subrufa, F. cinerea, Plagiolepis pygmaea, Myrmica lobicornis, M. sabuleti. The caterpillar of the last generation overwinters, less often the pupa. Overwinters on the stem, at the base of the plant or in the litter. Pupates in plant litter or in the top layer of soil, surrounding itself with a loose network of mulberry. Ants often carry pupae into various cracks or other hiding places in the ground. Forage plants Anthyllis vulneraria - common cankerworm, Anthyllis sp. - ulcer, Astragalus sp. - astragalus, Coronilla varia - multi-colored elm, Fragaria vesca - wild strawberry, Fragaria sp. - strawberry, Genista sp. - gorse, Lotus corniculatus - horned clam, Lotus sp. - common frog, Medicago sp. - alfalfa, Melilotus sp. - sweet clover, Onobrychis sp. - sainfoin, Ononis sp. - steelweed, Sarothamnus scoparius - paniculata, Trifolium pratense - meadow clover, Trifolium sp. - clover, Vicia cracca - mouse pea, Vicia sp. - peas, vetch. Summer time Habitat Eurybiont. Meadows of various types, clearings, clearings, edges, rights-of-way of railways and highways, vacant lots, gardens, parks, urban areas, etc. In the south it is a widespread species in alfalfa fields. On the Kola Peninsula it is observed in meadow communities near populated areas. Area Extratropical Eurasia. Absent from the Japanese Islands. Found throughout America. The most common and widespread species of the family. In northwestern Africa, it is replaced by the morphologically similar, but significantly different in molecular genetic markers, species Polyommatus celina (Austaut, 1879). Notes on taxonomy In Eastern Europe it is represented by a nominative subspecies. Along with the type form, there is also the icarinus form, in which there are no eyes or dots on the front wing in the basal region. In 1999, B.V. Stradomsky and Yu.G. Arzanov described the “doubles” of Polyommatus icarus - Polyommatus neglectus and Polyommatus elena. Differences in the structure of the genitalia of both sexes have been proposed as a basis. In the genitalia of the male elena, the lobes of the uncus are elongated and narrowed in comparison with icarus, the dorsal edge of the vinculum is clearly more convex. The aedeagus in elena is weakly sclerotized, laterally flattened, and has no bend in the basal quarter. The apex of the postvaginal plate in the genitalia of the female elena has characteristic areas of sclerotization, while icarus is characterized by a random arrangement of sclerotized points. Subsequent molecular genetic studies also showed a significant difference between icarus and elena (more than 6.5%) in such nuclear DNA sequence as internal transcribed spacer 2 - ITS 2. As for neglectus, this taxon was reduced to a synonym for Polyommatus icarus. Write a review about the article "Blueberry Icarus" Notes Links : Excerpt characterizing Blueberry Icarus - Oh, this is a thinking sea! Oh, you'll definitely like this! – Stella squealed cheerfully. – I already like it, but isn’t it dangerous? - No, no, don't worry! This is just to calm the “lost” souls who are still sad after coming here... I listened to it here for hours... It is alive, and for each soul a different one “sings”. Do you want to listen? And I just now noticed that many entities were splashing in these golden, sparkling waves... Some of them simply lay on the surface, smoothly swaying on the waves, others dived headlong into the “gold” and did not show up for a long time, apparently completely immersed into a mental “concert” and in no hurry to return from there... - Well, shall we listen? – the little girl pushed me impatiently. We came close... And I felt a wonderfully soft touch of a sparkling wave... It was something incredibly tender, surprisingly affectionate and calming, and at the same time, penetrating into the very “depths” of my surprised and slightly wary soul... Quiet “music” ran along my foot, vibrating in millions of different shades, and, rising upward, began to envelop me with something fabulously beautiful, something beyond any words... I felt that I was flying, although there was no flight it didn’t happen in reality. It was wonderful!.. Every cell dissolved and melted in the oncoming new wave, and the sparkling gold washed me through, taking away everything bad and sad and leaving only pure, pristine light in my soul... I didn’t even feel how I entered and plunged into this sparkling miracle almost headlong. It was just incredibly good and I never wanted to leave there... - Well, that’s enough already! A task awaits us! – Stella’s assertive voice burst into the shining beauty. - Did you like it? - Oh, yes! – I exhaled. – I didn’t want to go out so much!.. - Exactly! So some “bathe” until their next incarnation... And then they never return here again... -Where are they going? – I was surprised. - Below... Grandma says that you also have to earn a place here... And whoever just waits and rests will “work off” in the next incarnation. I think it's true... – What’s there below? – I asked interestedly. “It’s not so nice there anymore, believe me.” – Stella smiled slyly. - And this sea, is there only one or are there many of them here? – You’ll see... It’s all different – ​​where there’s the sea, where there’s just a “view”, and where there’s just an energy field full of different flowers, streams and plants, and all this also “heals” souls and calms... just not like that- then just use it - you must first earn it. – Who doesn’t deserve it? Don’t they live here? I didn’t understand. “They live, but they don’t live so beautifully anymore...” the little girl shook her head. – Here it’s the same as on Earth – nothing is given for free, but the values ​​here are completely different. And whoever doesn’t want it, gets everything much simpler. All this beauty cannot be bought, it can only be earned... “You speak now just like your grandmother, as if you had learned her words...” I smiled. - The way it is! – Stella returned the smile. – I try to remember a lot of what she says. Even things that I don’t quite understand yet... But I’ll understand someday, right? And then, perhaps, there will be no one to teach... So that will help. Here, we suddenly saw a very incomprehensible, but very attractive picture - on a shining, fluffy-transparent blue earth, like on a cloud, there was a cluster of entities that constantly replaced each other and took someone somewhere, and then returned again. - And what's that? What are they doing there? – I asked, puzzled. – Oh, they’re just helping the “newcomers” come, so they won’t be scared. This is where new entities come in. – Stella said calmly. – Have you already seen all this? Can we have a look? - Well, of course! – and we came closer... And I saw an action absolutely breathtaking in its beauty... In complete emptiness, as if out of nothing, a transparent luminous ball suddenly appeared and, like a flower, immediately opened up, releasing a new entity, which looked around completely confused, still not seeing anything. understanding... And then, the waiting entities hugged the “newcomer” with a clot of warm sparkling energy, as if calming him down, and immediately took him somewhere. “Do they come after death?..” I asked very quietly for some reason. Stella nodded and answered sadly: – When I arrived, we went to different “floors”, my family and I. It was very lonely and sad... But now everything is fine. I visited them here many times - they are happy now.

The diversity of the world's fauna is expanding with thousands of different species, both large and small, both bright and dark. Many legends and beliefs are associated with these wonderful insects, for example, in ancient times, the Slavs treated butterflies with respect, because they thought that they were the souls of the dead. But the topic of today's article will be blue butterfly, a fairly common species among the steppes and tropics.

Features and habitat of blueberry

Blueberry(in Latin Lycaenidae) is the second most common family on earth, has about five thousand species and occupies approximately thirty percent of the species known to science today. You can meet this miracle almost all over the globe, but most often in the tropics.

Analyzing photo of blueberry, you can describe its external features, such as size and color. This wingspan rarely reaches more than four centimeters, with the exception of several tropical species that have reached six centimeters.

The blueberry received its name directly because of its color, which has a blue or bluish tint; more rare are the blueberry with a red and brownish color.

Like many other creatures, they have such a concept as dimorphism, that is, external differences depending on gender. More specifically, in bluebirds, dimorphism is manifested precisely in color; males are usually brighter than females!

Mature individuals have six legs; in many males the front two are poorly developed. Hairy body, including head and eyes, occasionally bare. There is a pair of antennae and short palps.

Blueberry butterfly lives next to nutritious plants, on forest edges, near rivers and streams covered with dense vegetation. They are not inclined to travel long distances, so they may not leave a certain area of ​​the terrain their entire lives.

Character and lifestyle of the blueberry butterfly

In our country, the most popular of the bluebirds is Icarus, whose wingspan can reach four centimeters. Most of the species blueberry family, on the path of life are closely related to. Using microwaves, a kind of signals, the pupa attracts the attention of ants and can control their behavior.

It is a known fact that Blueberry caterpillars, penetrate the anthill and survive the winter there, feeding on ant larvae. Then it turns into a pupa, and after about a month a butterfly is born and leaves the anthill.

Blueberry butterfly caterpillar

Blueberry nutrition

Like other species, the blueberry over time loses the protein that was accumulated at the caterpillar stage, which leads to the loss of the ability to reproduce. In order to maintain the level of nutrients, the butterfly is forced to feed on liquid nectars using a specially adapted proboscis, which helps the butterfly collect nectar from flowers and other plants.

As for nutrition, then Blueberry - insect not particularly picky, but prefers plant nectars. Some types blue butterflies feeding nectar secreted by aphids, tree sap, rotting fruits, as well as bird droppings.

Reproduction and life expectancy of blueberry

The life of a blueberry consists of a sequence of transformations that can be described by a simple chain: egg - caterpillar - pupa - butterfly. It is known that the blueberry gives two generations per year, and the processes of reproduction of adult individuals take place in late spring and throughout the summer.

The offspring born in the spring develop and grow quite quickly, in contrast to the summer brood, which acquires the opportunity to develop only after nine or ten months. Unfortunately, butterflies of the blueberry family have the lowest life expectancy according to statistics, from two to four days.

Types of pigeons

It is impossible to describe all types of blueberries in one article, because each of them is unique in its own way! Let's look at some of them.

• Blueberry greenish- popular in the southern and central parts of the European continent. Most often found on mountain slopes. It has very small dimensions, does not exceed twenty millimeters. The back of the male is a light bluish shade with a brownish glimmer, while the back itself is, on the contrary, a brown shade with glimmers of bluish. There is a white stripe at the bottom of the wings.

In the photo there is a greenish blueberry

• Blueberry Icarus- found throughout Europe, regardless of climate zones. Prefers sunny meadows, steppes and heather fields. Brings one generation per year. The dimensions also do not exceed twenty millimeters. The males have a blue and purple tint, the female is brown, there is a small spot on the bottom of the wings that distinguishes this species from other existing ones.

Pictured is the blue butterfly Icarus

• Blueberry Marcida- lives in Transcaucasia. The size reaches no more than fifteen millimeters. The upper side of the wings is olive in color with a hint of bronze, the inner side is gray.

Blue butterfly Marcida

• Blueberry pea— settles throughout Southern Europe and migrates north in the spring. Found in meadows, gardens and forests. Size no more than eighteen millimeters. A distinctive feature is the small, thin tails at the back of the wings. The surface of the wings is blue-violet in males and ash-black in females.

Butterfly pea blueberry

• Blueberry- lives in a large part of Russia, especially in the Altai regions. It grows no more than fourteen millimeters. The surface color of the wings is dark brown, the inside is covered with white spots, the body is brown.

In the photo, the steppe coal blueberry

• Blueberry of heaven- found almost throughout Europe. Loves mountains, meadows and spacious forest glades. Describe the Blueberry butterfly the celestial one can be like this: the wingspan reaches thirty millimeters, but the butterfly itself is no more than sixteen. A distinctive feature is the black spots on the inside of the wings. The surface color is blue with a purple tint in the male and brown in the female.

In the photo there is a sky blue butterfly

• Blueberry Maleager- popular in Southern Europe and prefers to settle on sunny, flowering hills. Size about eighteen millimeters. As for what does blueberry look like? Maleager, then it has an incredibly charming, bright blue hue in both sexes, you can distinguish a male and a female by the width of the black border, in the female it is wider!

Blue butterfly Maleager

You can describe the representatives of this wonderful family for a long time, with passion, and they will undoubtedly be worth the time spent on them.

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Blueberry Icarus
Polyommatus icarus (Rottemburg, 1775)
Icarus (Greek mythology) - son of Daedalus. Icarus took to the skies on wings made from bird feathers held together with wax. But, contrary to his father's warning, he flew too close to the sun. The wax melted, the wings crumbled and, falling to the ground, Icarus died
Common Blue

Taxon synonyms.
Elena Strodomsky et Arzanov, 1999
neglectus Strodomsky et Arzanov, 1999

Adult forewing length- 13 - 17 mm.

Area.
Northwestern Africa, extratropical Eurasia. Absent from the Japanese Islands.
Found throughout the territory. The most common and widespread species of the family.

Habitat.
Eurybiont. Meadows of various types, clearings, clearings, edges, rights-of-way of railways and highways, wastelands, gardens, parks, urban areas, etc. In the south it is a widespread species in alfalfa fields. On the Kola Peninsula it is observed in meadow communities near populated areas.

Biology.
Depending on latitude, it develops in two to three generations. In the extreme south, for example, in the steppe zone of Ukraine and on the southern coast of Crimea, the development of the fourth is possible. In the south of Eastern Europe, adults are found almost continuously from early April to October. Females lay 1 egg on the upper side of the leaves of various herbaceous plants, sometimes at the petioles of young leaves, at the top of the stem or in the leaf sheath. Females often lay eggs on plants near anthills. Young caterpillars move to the underside of the leaf, eat the leaves from the edges, then destroy the leaf blades completely and come into contact with the ants Lasius flavus, L. alienus, L. niger, Formica subrufa, F. cinerea, Plagiolepis pygmaea, Myrmica lobicornis, M. sabuleti. The caterpillar of the last generation overwinters, less often the pupa. Overwinters on the stem, at the base of the plant or in the litter. Pupates in plant litter or in the top layer of soil, surrounding itself with a loose network of mulberry. Ants often carry pupae into various cracks or other hiding places in the ground.

Forage plants.
Anthyllis vulneraria - common cankerworm, Anthyllis sp. - ulcer, Astragalus sp. - astragalus, Coronilla varia - multi-colored elm, Fragaria vesca - wild strawberry, Fragaria sp. - strawberry, Genista sp. - gorse, Lotus corniculatus - horned clam, Lotus sp. - common frog, Medicago sp. - alfalfa, Melilotus sp. - sweet clover, Onobrychis sp. - sainfoin, Ononis sp. - steelweed, Sarothamnus scoparius - paniculata, Trifolium pratense - meadow clover, Trifolium sp. - clover, Vicia cracca - mouse pea, Vicia sp. - peas, vetch.

Summer time.
April - 2-3 decades, May, June, July, August, September, October - 1 decade.

Notes on taxonomy.
In Eastern Europe it is represented by a nominative subspecies. Along with the type form, there is also the icarinus form, in which there are no eyes or dots on the front wing in the basal region. In 1999, B.V. Stradomsky and Yu.G. Arzanov described the “doubles” of Polyommatus icarus - Polyommatus neglectus and Polyommatus elena based on differences in the wing pattern and structure of the genitalia of both sexes. The authors consider the main differences between neglectus and icarus to be a different color tone (blue with a purple tint in neglectus), and the absence of a pronounced basal spot in the Cu2-2A cell. In the male genitalia, the lobes of the uncus neglectus are shorter, but more massive than those of icarus, densely covered with dark setae. The valvae of neglectus are longer. The tegumen and vinculum in males of the latter taxon are strongly sclerotized, and the aedeagus is cylindrical and does not have bends, like in icarus. In the female genitalia, a characteristic feature of neglectus is the presence on the postvaginal plate of a pronounced sclerotization belt, sometimes expanding to cover its entire width. In comparison with Polyommatus icarus, butterflies of the Polyommatus elena appearance differ in the composition of the pattern of the underside of the wings. On the lower side in the Cu2-2A cell, the male elena has two closely spaced spots, while the male icarus has predominantly one. The basal spots on the underside of the hind wings of both sexes of elena are located on the same line, while in icarus the third spot from the costal margin is close to the base of the wing. The authors call a stripe in the Cu2-2A cell on the underside of the fore wings a characteristic feature of Elena females. In the genitalia of the male elena, the length of the lobes of the uncus exceeds its size in icarus, and the dorsal edge of the vinculum is clearly more convex. The aedeagus in elena is weakly sclerotized, laterally flattened, and has no bend in the basal quarter. The apex of the postvaginal plate in the genitalia of the female elena has characteristic areas of sclerotization, while icarus is characterized by a random arrangement of sclerotized points. Analyzing the comparative description of the three taxa, it turns out that, at least in terms of the structure of the genitalia, Polyommatus icarus occupies an “intermediate” position between the other two taxa or “combines” in its phenotype individual characteristics of the other two. For example, by the length of the uncus lobes in the male genitalia (long in elena, medium in length in icarus, short in neglectus), by the nature of sclerotization of the postvaginal plate in the female genitalia (only at the apex of the plate) in elena, randomly sclerotized (possibly also at the top and in the middle part) in icarus, with a belt in neglectus. At the same time, there is no clear correlation between the signs of external morphology (pattern of the underside of the wings, the composition of which is not stable in populations of the widespread and common species Polyommatus icarus throughout the entire range), and there is also no data on the reproductive isolation of species in nature found, moreover, together in the same biotopes. Although elena was not found by the authors in xerophytic habitats, this can explain the specificity of its phenotype, as for most eurytopic species, which can be found in both arid and mesophilic habitats. Thus, the description of these two taxa appears to be another statement of the high polymorphism of Polyommatus icarus, which is characteristic of it almost throughout its entire range.

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