Arhopala eupolis

Arhopala eupolis (Fabricius, 1775)
Purple Oak-blue
(formerly misidentified as Arhopala centaurus)
ARHOPALINI, THECLINAE, LYCAENIDAE, PAPILIONOIDEA

Don Herbison-Evans
(donherbisonevans@yahoo.com)
and
Stella Crossley

Arhopala eupolis
(Photo: courtesy of Bob Miller and Ian Hill)

These caterpillars are green with a brownish dorso-lateral lines and markings. The caterpillars are unusual in that they make noises. They are able to make clicking sounds.

(Photo: courtesy of Bob Miller and Ian Hill)

The caterpillars live in a silk shelter between curled leaves of their food plant, and feed on a variety of plants, including :

Green Plum ( Buchanania obovata, ANACARDIACEAE ),

False Almond ( Terminalia catappa, COMBRETACEAE ),

Long Flowered Mistletoe ( Dendrophthoe vitellina, LORANTHACEAE ),

Queens Flower ( Lagerstroemia speciosa, LYTHRACEAE )

Parinari ( Maranthes corymbosa, MALPIGHIACEAE ),

Gum Trees ( Eucalyptus, MYRTACEAE ), and

Carrotwood ( Cupaniopsis anacardioides, SAPINDACEAE ),

The caterpillars are attended by the green ants :

Citrus Ants ( Oecophylla smaragdina, FORMICINAE ),

and grow to a length of about 2.5 cms.

(Photo: courtesy of Bob Miller and Ian Hill)

They pupate in their larval shelter. The pupa is green with brown markings. Its length is about 2 cms. The pupae also are able to make clicking noises.

Male
(Specimen: courtesy of the Macleay Museum, University of Sydney)

The adult butterflies are far from dull The males are a brilliant metallic purple, and the females a brilliant blue.

Female
(Photo: courtesy of Bob Miller and Ian Hill)

The hind wings each have a little tail. The females have a black border around each fore wing. The butterflies have a wing span of about 4 cms.

Male, underside
(Specimen: courtesy of the Macleay Museum, University of Sydney)

Underneath, the butterflies are cream and fawn, with arcs of brown markings outlined in white. There is a small black eyespot at the rear tip of each hind wing.

Female, undeside
(Photo: courtesy of Bob Miller and Ian Hill)

The eggs are laid in groups of one to three on twigs of a foodplant bearing a nest of their attending ant species. The eggs are pale greyish-green and are flattened spheres, with a diameter of about 0.7 cms. The surface is minutely pitted.

Eggs, highly magnified
(Photo: courtesy of Bob Miller and Ian Hill)

The species is found only in Australia in :

asopus (Waterhouse & Lyell, 1914) in

Western Australia, and

Northern Territory, and

Queensland.

( Australia Post, 1998, misnamed as Arhopala centaurus)