Henry's Elfin Callophrys henrici (Grote & Robinson, 1867)    Synonyms: Callophrys henrici viridissima, Woodland Elfin.
Kingdom Animalia   >   Phylum Arthropoda   >   Class Insecta   >   Order Lepidoptera   >   Family Lycaenidae   >   Genus Callophrys   

Status:

Henry's Elfin (Callophrys henrici) is a beautiful early-season butterfly, found across much of the state in wooded areas where its larval hosts, American Holly or Eastern Redbud, can be found. This butterfly is univoltine, meaning it has a single adult activity period per year, from early April to early May in Maryland (Butterflies of Maryland: A Biological Summary and Checklist by Lynn Davidson & Richard Smith; Brock & Kaufman 2003; BAMONA site).

Note that a green color variant was described by Harry Pavulaan as Incisalia henrici viridissima (Maryland Entomologist, 1998). Please submit any photos of this subspecies or presumed intergrades.

Relationships:

The larval food plants in this region are Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis) and American Holly (Ilex opaca). American Plum is also listed as a host plant in the Butterflies of Pennsylvania (Monroe, et al., 2017).

There are 221 records in the project database.

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An Henry's Elfin in Charles Co., Maryland (4/14/2018). Photo by Frode Jacobsen. (MBP list)

A green color variant of Henry's Elfin in Prince George's Co., Maryland (4/20/2022). Photo by Lydia Fravel. (MBP list)

Henry's Elfin in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (4/3/2022). Photo by Lydia Fravel. (MBP list)

A Henry's Elfin in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (4/19/2015). Photo by Bonnie Ott. (MBP list)

A Henry's Elfin in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (4/11/2015). Photo by Richard Orr. (MBP list)

A Henry's Elfin in Wicomico Co., Maryland (4/13/2013). Photo by Annette Allor. (MBP list)

A Henry's Elfin in Charles Co., Maryland (4/22/2018). Photo by Judy Gallagher. (MBP list)

A Henry's Elfin in Charles Co., Maryland (3/31/2018). Photo by Frode Jacobsen. (MBP list)

A Henry's Elfin in Wicomico Co., Maryland (4/10/2011). Photo by Bill Hubick. (MBP list)

Henry's Elfin in Baltimore Co., Maryland (4/18/2013). (c) Frode Jacobsen, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by Frode Jacobsen. (MBP list)

A Henry's Elfin in Dorchester Co., Maryland (4/21/2015). Photo by Mark Etheridge. (MBP list)

A Henry's Elfin in Prince George's Co., Maryland (5/2/2015). Photo by Wendy Crowe. (MBP list)

Henry's Elfin in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (3/20/2020). (c) Nathaniel Schwartz, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND). Photo by Nathaniel Schwartz via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

A Henry's Elfin in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (4/19/2014). Photo by Bill Hubick. (MBP list)

Henry's Elfin in Worcester Co., Maryland (4/11/2021). (c) Jim Brighton, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by Jim Brighton. (MBP list)

Henry's Elfin in Worcester Co., Maryland (5/2/2020). (c) jared satchell, all rights reserved. Photo by Jared Satchell. (MBP list)

Henry's Elfin in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (4/21/2018). (c) Timothy Reichard, all rights reserved. Photo by Timothy Reichard. (MBP list)

Henry's Elfin in Calvert Co., Maryland (4/5/2023). (c) Jason E. Avery, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by Jason Avery. (MBP list)

Henry's Elfin in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (4/21/2018). (c) Timothy Reichard, all rights reserved. Photo by Timothy Reichard. (MBP list)

Henry's Elfin in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (4/21/2018). (c) Timothy Reichard, all rights reserved. Photo by Timothy Reichard. (MBP list)

Henry's Elfin in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (4/19/2015). (c) Timothy Reichard, all rights reserved. Photo by Timothy Reichard. (MBP list)

The green subspecies of Henry's Elfin (C. h. viridissima) in Wicomico Co., Maryland (3/31/2016). Identified to subspecies by Rick Borchelt. Harry Pavulaan, who described the subspecies, notes that this individual is 'about as green as ssp. viridissima gets!' Photo by Jeff Culler. (MBP list)


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