Blue and copper

 
 

About a week ago we were walking back from field work and noticed a few brilliant Blue Coppers (Lycaena heteronea) nectaring on buckwheat flowers (Eriogonum sp.).  

Males are bright blue above:

 

 

 

And much paler below:

 

 

 

 

Although there's a hint of blue, females are copper colored above:

 

 

 

 

And here's one more, up close, thanks to Eric's slow and patient approach with a point-and-shoot camera!

 

 

 

 Photographed near Fort Ross on 1 June 2022.

Blue highlights

 

Buckeye on buckwheat, 9 July 2020

B & B

 

Whew, it's been a busy week, but here's a bee on a buckwheat for you!  Not sure which species of bee yet, but it's sipping nectar and acquiring pollen from Seaside Wild Buckwheat (Eriogonum latifolium).  Photographed on Bodega Head on 11 July 2018.  [Click on the image for a larger version.]

Foraging among the flowers

A few visitors to the Seaside Wild Buckwheat flowers (Eriogonum latifolium) in the Bodega Dunes on 26 August 2017:

 

Male Acmon Blue (Plebejus acmon) from below

 

Female Acmon Blue (Plebejus acmon) from above

 

A small wasp with big green eyes, possibly a bee hunter (Philanthus sp.)?

 

A beautiful iridescent blue wasp, possibly a spider wasp (Psorthaspsis sp.)?

If you can assist with the wasp identifications, let me know!

On the buckwheat

Here's a bit of a mystery.  Can you guess what caused this pattern on the leaf of the Coast Buckwheat (Eriogonum latifolium)?

 

The next photo will give away part of the answer: 

 

A small caterpillar was feeding on the outer layers of the Coast Buckwheat leaf.  I'm guessing the caterpillar is either a blue or a hairstreak.  Unfortunately, I'm not sure which one.  If you know which butterfly this is, let me know, and I'll post the answer!

Photos from the Pinnacle Gulch Trail on 19 June 2015.

P.S.  Click on the names for an example of an Acmon Blue, a Gray Hairstreak, or a Coast Bramble Hairstreak.