Green Hairstreak (English name: Neozephyrus taxila)

Japanese: ミドリシジミ（英語表記）Neozephyrus taxila

Lepidoptera, Lycaenidae. Forewing length about 20mm. Hindwings have a thin tail. The upper surface of the wings is golden green with a broad black edge in males, and blackish brown with no golden green scales in females. There are also some with completely blackish brown wings and some with yellowish brown or blue-purple spots on the forewings, and four types are recognized with these combinations. The underside is gray-brown or reddish brown, and both the front and back wings have a thin white horizontal band near the outer edge from the center, and the rear wings form a W shape at the back. Adults appear from June to September, and males fly above trees in the evening. The larvae feed on alder trees. They are distributed in Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, Sakhalin, Korea, and eastern Siberia. The ones found in Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu are called the subspecies N. t. japonicus , and the ones found in Sakhalin and Hokkaido are small and are called another subspecies N. t. regius . Incidentally, closely related species native to Japan that have golden-green scales on the upper surface of the male's wings are divided into four genera: Neozephyrus , Chrysozephyrus , Favonius , and Quercusia , but males of the black green hairstreak F. yuasai are an exception in that they lack green scales. The larvae feed on oak and serrata. The Hisamatsu green hairstreak C. hisamatsusanus is notable for the fact that the W-shaped pattern on the underside of its hind wings has become V-shaped. The larvae feed on Quercus salicina, a member of the Fagaceae family. The males of the Fuji green hairstreak Q. fujisana have blue upper surfaces on the wings. The undersides of both sexes are white with black bands and black spots. The larvae feed on plants such as beech and Japanese beech, which are members of the Fagaceae family. It is an endemic species of Japan, found in Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu.

Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia About Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia Information

Japanese:

鱗翅目シジミチョウ科。前翅長 20mm内外。後翅に細い尾状突起がある。翅表は，雄では金緑色で外縁は幅広く黒色，雌では黒褐色で金緑色鱗粉を欠くが，全面黒褐色のものと，前翅に黄褐色斑，青紫色斑のあるものとがあり，その組合せで4型が認められている。裏面は灰褐色ないし赤褐色で，前後翅とも中央より外縁寄りに細い白色横帯があり，後翅では後方でW字状をなす。成虫は6～9月に出現し，雄は夕方樹上を飛ぶ。幼虫はハンノキ類を食べる。北海道，本州，四国，九州，サハリン，朝鮮，シベリア東部に分布する。本州，四国，九州産は亜種 N. t. japonicus，サハリン，北海道産は小型で別亜種 N. t. regiusという。なお，日本産で雄の翅表に金緑鱗をもつ近縁種は Neozephyrus，Chrysozephyrus，Favonius，Quercusiaの4属に分けられているが，クロミドリシジミ F. yuasaiの雄は例外的に緑色鱗を欠く。幼虫はクヌギ，アベマキを食べる。ヒサマツミドリシジミ C. hisamatsusanusは後翅裏面のW字紋がV字形になっている点が著しい。幼虫の食草はブナ科のウラジロガシ。フジミドリシジミ Q. fujisanaは雄の翅表が青色を帯びる。裏面は雌雄とも白色で，黒色帯と黒色斑がある。幼虫の食草はブナ科のブナ，イヌブナなど。北海道，本州，四国，九州に産する日本固有種である。

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