Soapberry Hairstreak Phaeostrymon alcestis

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Soapberry Hairstreak Phaeostrymon alcestis Santa Catalin Mountains north of Tucson Arizona United States May Adult Lycaenidae Theclinae Hairstreak butterflies have "tails" on the bottom wings which, together with the orange and blue spots, look like the head of an insect and can fool a predator into grabbing the wrong end, leaving the butterfly to fly away essentially unharmed by missing a piece of its wing.

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Size: 5300px × 3539px
Photo credit: © Rick & Nora Bowers / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: animal, butterfly, delicate, flight, fly, fragile, hairstreak, insect, lepidoptera, mimicry, nature, outdoor, protective, scales, small, watcher, wings