The Coral Hairstreak is a North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

n butterfly

Butterfly

A butterfly is a mainly day-flying insect of the order Lepidoptera, which includes the butterflies and moths. Like other holometabolous insects, the butterfly's life cycle consists of four parts: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Most species are diurnal. Butterflies have large, often brightly coloured...

 in the family Lycaenidae

Lycaenidae

The Lycaenidae are the second-largest family of butterflies, with about 6000 species worldwide, whose members are also called gossamer-winged butterflies...

.

Description

This tailless hairstreak is brownish gray on the upper side of the wings. The underside of the hind wing has a distinct row of red-orange spots along the outer margin, but lacks the blue spot found in most hairstreaks.

Habitat

This butterfly favors brushy places, thickets, overgrown fields, open woodlands, and streamsides.

Nectar Plants

The Coral Hairstreak is frequently seen visiting butterfly weed

Butterfly weed

Asclepias tuberosa is a species of milkweed native to eastern North America. It is a perennial plant growing to tall, with clustered orange or yellow flowers from early summer to early fall. The leaves are spirally arranged, lanceolate, 5–12 cm long and 2–3 cm broad.This plant favors...

, but also uses New Jersey tea

Ceanothus americanus

Ceanothus americanus is a species of shrub native to North America. Common names include New Jersey tea, Jersey tea ceanothus, variations of red root , and mountain sweet , and wild snowball...

, dogbane

Apocynum

Apocynum, commonly known as Dogbane and Indian Hemp, is a genus of the plant family of the Apocynaceae with seven species. From the Greek: apo, away; cyno, dog, attributed to its toxicity...

 and sulphur flower

Eriogonum umbellatum

Eriogonum umbellatum is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common name sulphurflower buckwheat, or simply sulphur flower. It is native to western North America from California to Colorado to central Canada, where it is abundant and found in many habitats...

 as nectar plants.

Host Plants

Here are a list of host plants used by the Coral Hairstreak:

• Wild Cherry
• Wild Plum
  Prunus americana
  Prunus americana, commonly called the American Plum, Wild Plum, or Marshall's Large Yellow Sweet Plum, is a species of Prunus native to North America from Saskatchewan to New Mexico east to New Hampshire and Florida. It has often been planted outside its core range and sometimes escapes cultivation...
  
  
• Chokecherry
  Chokecherry
  Prunus virginiana, commonly called chokecherry, bitter-berry, or Virginia bird cherry, is a species of bird cherry native to North America, where it is found almost throughout the continent except for the Deep South and the far north.-Growth:It is a suckering shrub or small tree growing to 5 m tall...
  
  

External links

• S. titus photos, BugGuide
• S. titus photos, Cirrus Image
• S. titus info, ODNR Division of Wildlife

• Coral Hairstreak, Butterflies of Canada