Common Blue Butterfly (Zizina otis labradus)
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Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Lepidoptera Family: Lycaenidae Genus: Zizina Species: Z. otis Sub species: Z. o. labradus Binomial name: Zizina otis labradus, Synonym: Zizina labradus labradus Common name: Common Blue, Pepe Ao Uri (Source: TERRAIN.NET.NZ) |
Zizina otis labradus is probably New Zealand's most common butterfly (originally wind blown from Australia).
It is a small butterfly (up to 23mm wingspan) with a weak, fluttering flight and so it usually flies close to ground level close to a food source. In some areas it is considered a pest species as one trail recorded over 300 larvae per square metre on a drought-prone pasture. They lay single eggs which are laid and hatched in a matter of days. The eggs are laid on leaves, stems, flower buds and young pods of food plants, chiefly legumes of the Fabaceae family such as beans, clover and various native species. Newly hatched larvae eat small holes from young leaves or flower buds, and later feed mainly inside flowers. |
For more details visit: http://nzbutterfly.info/downloads/nzButterfly.info-factsheet-common-blue.pdf
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