Summary ²

Jalmenus evagoras, the imperial hairstreak, imperial blue, or common imperial blue, is a small, metallic blue butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is commonly found in eastern coastal regions of Australia. This species is notable for its unique mutualism with ants of the genus Iridomyrmex. The ants provide protection for juveniles and cues for adult mating behavior. They are compensated with food secreted from J. evagoras larvae. Ants greatly enh

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Michael Keogh, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by Michael Keogh
2. (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jalmenus_evagoras

More Info

• iNaturalistAU taxon page
• Animal Diversity Web
• Atlas of Living Australia
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• CUIC Insect Images
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HOSTS - a Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants

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