North American Butterflies and Moths List

The definitive website on wildbirds & nature




The Registry of Nature Habitats

U.S. Geological Survey


Butterflies of North America

Butterflies of Texas

White Scrub-Hairstreak (Strymon albata)
JPG -- species photo

White Scrub-Hairstreak (Strymon albata [Felder & Felder])

Wing span: 1 1/8 - 1 3/8 inches (2.9 - 3.5 cm).

Identification: Upperside gray with large areas of white patches. Underside of hindwing pale gray with faded postmedian line; eyespot near tail does not contain orange.

Life history: Eggs are laid on leaves and flower buds of the host plant. Caterpillars feed on flower buds and young fruits.

Flight: Possibly two broods in South Texas from June-December, throughout the year in the tropics.

Caterpillar hosts: Abutilon incanum in the Malvaceae family.

Adult food: Flower nectar including blue boneset.

Habitat: Second growth and shrubby fields in seasonally dry tropical lowlands.

Range: Venezuela and Columbia north to Mexico. A rare stray to South Texas.

Conservation: Conserve any populations in South Texas.

The Nature Conservancy Global Rank: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.

Management needs: Set aside more Tamaulipan brushland habitat in the Lower Rio Grande Valley.

References:


Opler, P. A. and V. Malikul. 1992. A field guide to eastern  butterflies. Peterson 

    field guide #4. Houghton-Mifflin Co.,  Boston. 396 pages, 48 color plates.



Scott, J. A. 1986. The butterflies of North America. Stanford  University Press, 

    Stanford, Calif. 583 pages, 64 color plates.

Author: Jane M. Struttmann

State and Regional References:


Neck, R.W. 1996. A Field Guide to Butterflies of Texas. Gulf Publishing Co., 

     Houston, Texas.



Opler, Paul A. 1999. Peterson Field Guide to Western Butterflies, revised 

     edition. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, Mass.



Stanford, R.E. and P.A. Opler. 1993. Atlas of Western USA Butterflies. 

     Privately published, Denver, Colo. 



Tilden, J.W. and A.C. Smith. 1986. A Field Guide to Western Butterflies. 

     Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, Mass.

     

Tveten, J. and Tveten, G.  1996.  Butterflies of Houston & Southeast Texas.

     Univ. of Texas Press, Austin, TX.  292 pp.

     

White Scrub-Hairstreak (Strymon albata)
distribution map
map legend

Disclaimer
Return to species list
Return to Butterflies of North America main page