Under Construction

Polyommatini Swainson 1827

The Blues

Andrew V. Z. Brower
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Containing group: Polyommatinae

Introduction

The "blues," a cosmopolitan group of small, delicate butterflies, many of which exhibit iridescent or powdery blue dorsal wing surfaces, especially in males. Unlike the Lycaeinae and Theclinae, the hindwings of Polyommatini tend to be evenly rounded.

Note that a number of familiar generic names, such as Albulina, Agrodiaetus, Aricia and Lycaeides (as well as many others), have been subsumed as subgenera within the large Holarctic genera Plebejus and Polyommatus. The following quote from Eliot remains apropos to the current situation.

Discussion of Phylogenetic Relationships

The grouping of genera into sections follows Eliot (1973), who stated:

"I have to admit complete failure in my efforts to find a satisfactory basis for subdividing this very large tribe into a few major groups. I have therefore fallen back on naming no less than thirty 'sections,' many of them of no more than subsection or even generic worth."

 

Other Names for Polyommatini Swainson 1827

References

Bridges, C. A. 1988 Catalogue of family-group and genus-group names (Lepidoptera: Rhopalocera). Urbana, IL: Charles A. Bridges.

Eliot, J. N. 1973 The higher classification of the Lycaenidae (Lepidoptera): a tentative arrangement. Bull. Br. Mus. Nat. Hist. (Ent.) 28, 371-505, 6 pls.

Title Illustrations
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Scientific Name Acytolepis puspa lambi
Specimen Condition Live Specimen
Source Lycaenid butt
Source Collection Flickr
Image Use creative commons This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License - Version 2.0.
Copyright © 2006 budak
Scientific Name Brephidium exilis
Location Tucson, Pima County, Arizona, USA
Specimen Condition Live Specimen
Image Use creative commons This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 2.5.
Copyright © 2007
Scientific Name Cupido amyntula
Location Cochrane, Alberta, Canada
Specimen Condition Live Specimen
Source Sparkling Blue
Source Collection Flickr
Image Use creative commons This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 2.0.
Copyright © 2007 Brad Smith
About This Page


Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA

Correspondence regarding this page should be directed to Andrew V. Z. Brower at

Page: Tree of Life Polyommatini Swainson 1827. The Blues. Authored by Andrew V. Z. Brower. The TEXT of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License - Version 3.0. Note that images and other media featured on this page are each governed by their own license, and they may or may not be available for reuse. Click on an image or a media link to access the media data window, which provides the relevant licensing information. For the general terms and conditions of ToL material reuse and redistribution, please see the Tree of Life Copyright Policies.

Citing this page:

Brower, Andrew V. Z. 2008. Polyommatini Swainson 1827. The Blues. Version 19 May 2008 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Polyommatini/111537/2008.05.19 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/

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