Tomares_mauretanicus Knowpia

Tomares mauretanicus
	Living specimen
	Male (top) and female
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Lycaenidae
Genus:	Tomares
Species:	T. mauretanicus
Binomial name
	Tomares mauretanicus; (H. Lucas, 1849)
Synonyms
	Polyommatus mauretanicus H. Lucas, 1849; Polyommatus mauretanicus var. undulatus Gerhard, 1853; Thestor mauretanicus ab. sabulosus Oberthür, 1910; Thestor mauretanicus var. boisduvali Oberthür, 1910; Thestor mauretanicus ab. tristis Oberthür, 1915; Thestor mauretanicus f. subtus-reductus Zopp, 1954; Thestor mauretanicus f. subtus-confluens Zopp, 1954; Thestor mauretanicus f. maroccanus Zopp, 1954; Tomares mauretanicus antonius Brevignon, 1985;

Tomares mauretanicus, the Moroccan hairstreak, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae.

Description edit

The wingspan is 28–30 mm.

Habitat edit

Grassy places from sea level to 2400 m

Distribution edit

It is found only in northern Africa.

Life cycle and behaviour edit

The butterfly flies from January to March. In the High Atlas it flies into June.

The larvae feed on Hippocrepis multisiliquosa, Hippocrepis minor, Hedysarum pallidum, Astragalus epiglottis and Astragalus pentaglottis. The eggs are laid in clusters on the leaves of the host plant. The species flies on hot, dry hillsides and it has been known to 'hilltop'.

Subspecies edit

Tomares mauretanicus mauretanicus (Algeria)
Tomares mauretanicus antonius (Brévignon, 1984) (Middle Atlas in Morocco)
Tomares mauretanicus amelnorum (Tarrier, 1997) (Anti-Atlas in Morocco)^[2]

References edit

^ Savela, Markku (March 10, 2019). "Tomares mauretanicus (Lucas, 1849)". Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
^ parc naturel d'Ifrane Archived 2009-04-12 at the Wayback Machine

Summary