BC Conservation Data Centre: Species Summary
Callophrys mossii
Moss' Elfin
| Scientific Name: | Callophrys mossii (Hy. Edwards, 1881) | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name Synonyms: |
Incisalia mossii
|
||||||||||
| English Name: | Moss' Elfin | ||||||||||
| Classification / Taxonomy | |||||||||||
| Scientific Name - Concept Reference: | Pelham, J. P. 2008. A catalogue of the butterflies of the United States and Canada with a complete bibliography of the descriptive and systematic literature. The Journal of Research on the Lepidoptera. Volume 40. 658 pp. Revised 14 February, 2012. | ||||||||||
| Classification Level: | Species | ||||||||||
| Taxonomy Comments: | SName changed from Incisalia mossii to Callophrys mossii to align with NatureServe (Feb 22, 2005 - DW). | ||||||||||
| Species Group: | Invertebrate Animal | ||||||||||
| Species Code: | LE-CALMOS | ||||||||||
|
|||||||||||
| Conservation Status / Legal Designation | |||||||||||
| Global Status: | G4 (Mar 2023) | ||||||||||
| Provincial Status: | S4 (Feb 2020) | ||||||||||
| BC List: | Yellow | ||||||||||
| Provincial FRPA list: | |||||||||||
| Provincial Wildlife Act: | |||||||||||
| COSEWIC Status: | |||||||||||
| SARA Schedule: | |||||||||||
| General Status Canada: | 6 - Not Assessed (2000) | ||||||||||
| Ecology & Life History | |||||||||||
| General Description: | |||||||||||
| Migration Characteristics: (Global / Provincial) | |||||||||||
|
Nonmigrant: Local Migrant: Distant Migrant: Within Borders Migrant: |
N / N / N / na / |
||||||||||
| Habitats: (Type / Subtype / Dependence) |
Grassland/Shrub / Antelope-brush Steppe / Facultative - frequent use
Grassland/Shrub / Grassland / Facultative - frequent use Grassland/Shrub / Meadow / Facultative - frequent use Grassland/Shrub / Sagebrush Steppe / Facultative - frequent use Rock/Sparsely Vegetated Rock / Rock/Sparsely Vegetated Rock / Obligate Rock/Sparsely Vegetated Rock / Talus / Obligate |
||||||||||
| Global Habitat Comments: | Opler (1999) describes habitat as moist slopes and canyons. Scott (1986) describes it as wooded canyons, cliffs, rocky areas. Usually, but not always, mountainous areas, often with steep topography, with the larval food plants in the genera Sedum , including S. spathulifolium (Emmel and Ferris 1972), S. obtusatum (Emmel and Emmel 1974) and S. lanceolatum, and Sedella (Butte County, California). Thin-soiled or rocky north-facing slopes are most frequent (Weiss, 1993). In some areas, adult males require small shrubs for perching substrates. Coyotebrush (Baccharis pilularis) is used as a perching substrate along the coast of California. | ||||||||||
| Food Habits: |
Herbivore:Immature
Nectarivore: Adult |
||||||||||
| Global Food Habits Comments: | Caterpillar eats reproductive portions of host plants, primarily Sedum spathulifolium (Emmel and Ferris 1972), S. obtusatum (Emmel and Emmel 1974), and S. lanceolatum (Ferris and Stanford 1970). Caterpillars are known to feed on Sedella in Butte County, California. Adults nectar at a variety of flowers such as dandelion and Lomatium utriculatum (Weiss 1993). Eggs are laid on host inflorescences and larvae feed on developing flowers and fruits. | ||||||||||
| Global Phenology: | |||||||||||
| Global Phenology Comments: | Depending on location adults may be found as early as early February (subspecies bayensis (Emmel and Ferris, 1972; Weiss, 1993) or March (subspecies schryveri in Colorado Front Range) or as late as early July (subspecies windi in California's Sierra Nevada). For subspecies bayensis egg-laying takes place in March and early April, first and second instar larvae bore into the succulent leaves, later instar move up to the flower heads, pupation probably occurs in litter under the host plants (Emmel and Ferris, 1972). Larvae of subspecies bayensis may be attended by up to nine different ant species but the relation is facultative (Arnold, 1983). Winter is passed by the chrysalid (Scott, 1986). For subspecies schryveri (Ferris and Stanford, 1970) eggs were laid as late as May and hatching required about 6 days. The timing for the life cycle for the latter subspecies is similar and is described in detail (Ferris and Stanford, 1970). Winter is passed by pupae in litter at base of host plants. |
||||||||||
| Provincial Phenology: (1st half of month/ 2nd half of month) |
|||||||||||
| Colonial Breeder: | N | ||||||||||
| Length(cm)/width(cm)/Weight(g): | / / | ||||||||||
| Elevation (m) (min / max): |
Global:
Provincial: |
||||||||||
| Distribution | |||||||||||
| Endemic: | N | ||||||||||
| Global Range Comment: | Western mountain archipelago from southern British Columbia and Alberta south through coast ranges, Cascade-Sierra Nevada, and Rocky Mountains to southern California and southern Colorado. Absent from most intermountain areas. For example, unknown from Nevada and Utah (Opler 1999). | ||||||||||
| Authors / Contributors | |||||||||||
| Global Information Author: | P.A. Opler | ||||||||||
| Last Updated: | Nov 07, 2000 | ||||||||||
| Provincial Information Author: | |||||||||||
| Last Updated: | |||||||||||
| References and Related Literature | |||||||||||
Arnold, R.A. 1983. Ecological studies of six endangered butterflies (Lepidoptera, Lycaenidae): Island biogeography, patch dynamics, and the design of habitat preserves. Entomology Vol. 99. U. California Publications. 161 pp. |
|||||||||||
Emmel, J.F. and C.D. Ferris. 1972. The biology of Callophrys (Incisalia) fotis bayensis (Lycaenidae). Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 26: 237-244. |
|||||||||||
Emmel, T.C. and J.F. Emmel. 1973. The Butterflies of Southern California. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Science Series 26, 148 pages. |
|||||||||||
Ferris, C. D. and R. E. Stanford. 1970. Incisalia fotis schryveri (Lycaenidae): Bionomic Notes and Life History. |
|||||||||||
Opler, P. A., and A. B. Wright. 1999. A field guide to western butterflies. Second edition. Peterson Field Guides. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. 540 pp. |
|||||||||||
Scott, J. A. 1986. The Butterflies of North America: A Natural History and Field Guide. Stanford University Press, Stanford CA. 583 pp. |
|||||||||||
Stanford, R. E. and P. A. Opler. 1993. Atlas of western U.S.A. butterflies, including adjacent parts of Canada and Mexico. Self-published, Denver, CO. 265 pp. |
|||||||||||
Weiss, S.B. 1993. The San Bruno elfin, Incisalia mossi bayensis (Brown). Page 141-142 in: T.R. New, editor. Conservation biology of Lycaenidae (Butterflies). Occasional paper of the IUCN Species Survival Commission No. 8, Gland, Switzerland. |
|||||||||||
Please visit the website Conservation Status Ranks for definitions of the data fields used in this summary report.
Suggested Citation:
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. 2000. Species Summary: Callophrys mossii. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed Jun 4, 2026).