Male, Switzerland, August 2013
Polyommatus (Agrodiaetus) damon
Refresh page if pictures don't load fully:
Male, Switzerland, August 2013
Male on ground and female in flight, Switzerland, August 2013
With northern brown argus in flight and green-veined whites behind,
Switzerland, August 2013
Male, Switzerland, July 2017
Male, Switzerland, August 2013
Female, Switzerland, July 2007
Female, Switzerland, July 2007
Female, Switzerland, August 2013
Males with chalkhill blue (left of centre) and idas blue (in flight),
Switzerland, August 2013
With green-veined whites, Switzerland, August 2013
Male, Switzerland, August 2008
Male, Switzerland, September 2008
Male, Switzerland, September 2008
Female, Switzerland, September 2008
Female, Switzerland, September 2008
Switzerland, July 2005
This is a lovely butterfly of
high and
late summer in mountainous regions of Europe, though its distribution
is restricted to the southern half of the continent. From July onwards
it may be seen in flowery grassland, scrub and open woodland where its
foodplant, sainfoin, grows. It is said to fly from 1000m but in
Switzerland I have seen it much lower than this, not far above the
valley floor, at about 600m. Males in particular love to gather with
other butterflies at damp spots to sup minerals. Females are often seen
in the vicinity of the foodplants.
The male is gleaming sky blue
above with
broad, dark margins leaking inwards along the veins. The female is all
brown, usually with a very few blue scales at the wing bases. Both
sides have a srong, clear, white stripe on the underside hindwing,
extending from the base to the submarginal region. In the Alps it is
the only blue with this feature, making it very easy to recognise. The
female underside is a deep chestnut while the male is a lighter shade
of tan.
The Damon blue hibernates as
an egg or
first instar larva in most of its range. Given that it is a montane
species, this explains its relatively late emergence in the season.