The Albocerulean is a small butterfly

Butterfly

A butterfly is a mainly day-flying insect of the order Lepidoptera, which includes the butterflies and moths. Like other holometabolous insects, the butterfly's life cycle consists of four parts: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Most species are diurnal. Butterflies have large, often brightly coloured...

 found in India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

 that belongs to the Lycaenids or Blues

Lycaenidae

The Lycaenidae are the second-largest family of butterflies, with about 6000 species worldwide, whose members are also called gossamer-winged butterflies...

 family.

Description

Male upperside, fore wing: blackish brown, a central patch that occupies the lower apical portion of the cell and the basal halves of interspaces 2 and 3 white; lightly suffused with iridescent lilacine blue; this colour is intensified and spreads upwards over the dark brown along the basal portion of the costa, inwards right up to the base of the wing, downwards oyer three-fourths of the dorsal area from base and outwards from the white patch towards the termen; the ground-colour occupies the apex very broadly, and posteriorly forms a broad border to the termen. Hind wing: lilacine blue, base and costal margin broadly suffused with fuscous; a large subapical patch diffusely white; finally, an anticiliary line black. Cilia of both fore and hind wings white, turning to brown towards the apex of the fore wing. Underside: white, the terminal markings generally prominent in other forms, more or less obsolescent in both fore and hind wings in all specimens that L have seen. Pore wing: the slender short line on the discocellulars and the discal transverse series of short detached lines pale brown, the latter sinuous and anteriorly curved inwards. Hind wing: three subbasal spots in transverse order, a spot below the middle of the costa not larger or more prominent than the others, and an irregular discal series of elongate spots, pale brown. Antenna, head, thorax and abdomen dark brown, the antennro ringed with white; beneath: the palpi, thorax and abdomen white.

Female upperside, fore wing: a beautiful lilacine blue with a white central patch that occupies the lower apical half of the cell and the basal three-fourths of interspaces 3, 4 and 5; apex of wing and upper portion of termen broadly black, the inner border of this colour curving from a preapical point on tho costa to apex of vein 3, thence the black continued as a slender anticiliary line to the tornus. Hind wing: white shaded with pale lilacine blue at base and broadly along the costal and dorsal margins ; a slender anti-ciliary black line. Cilia as in the male. Underside: similar to that of the male, all the markings slighter, more delicate, and on the hind wing more irregular. Antennae, head, thorax and abdomen as in the male.

Taxonomy

The butterfly was earlier known as Lycaenopsis albocoerulea Moore

Frederic Moore

Frederic Moore FZS was a British entomologist. It has been said that Moore was born at 33 Bruton Street but may be incorrect given that this was the address of the menagerie and office of the Zoological Society of London from 1826 to 1836.Moore was appointed an assistant in the East India Company...

.

See also

• Lycaenidae
  Lycaenidae
  The Lycaenidae are the second-largest family of butterflies, with about 6000 species worldwide, whose members are also called gossamer-winged butterflies...
  
  
• List of butterflies of India
• List of butterflies of India (Lycaenidae)