Lacey's Scrub-Hairstreak (Strymon alea [Godman & Salvin])
Wing span: 3/4 - 1 1/8 inches (1.9 - 2.9 cm).
Identification: One long tail on hindwing. Upperside dark gray. Underside gray with a complicated pattern of blotches near the wing base, an irregular brown postmedian line, and a submarginal stripe of small, brown triangular spots.
Life history: Caterpillars eat buds and flowers.
Flight: Possibly four broods from April-December in Texas.
Caterpillar hosts: Bernardia myricaefolia in the Euphorbiaceae family.
Adult food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Subtropical thorn scrub.
Range: Northwest Costa Rica north through Mexico to central and South Texas.
