Bug FAQMarine Blue
Leptotes marina · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Lycaenidae
How to recognize it
The top side of the wings is blue, and the underside has brown bands with two blue spots on each hind wing.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Its wingspan ranges from 22 to 29 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is found in weedy, open sites and desert habitats.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Caterpillars feed on a variety of plants such as Astragalus, Acacia greggii, Medicago sativa, Phaseolus and many others.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Adults are on the wing from April to September in northern areas and throughout the year in southern areas.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
In the north they appear from spring to early fall; in the south they can be seen all year.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its range includes North America and Central America.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 32 of 51 states and DC. Most records: California, Arizona, Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada, Utah, Oklahoma.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Same family (Lycaenidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leptotes_marina
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.