Butterflies of Sri Lanka

Similar species - Ceruleans

Male Milky Cerulean - The upper sides are pale metallic cerulean. The forewing and hind wing outer margins are very finely edged with black There is no submarginal band on the hind wing.

Male Metallic Cerulean - The upper sides are metallic cerulean and the outer margins of the forewings are edged with a more black than in the Milky Cerulean. The black border tapers off towards the lower margin of the forewing. There are two rows of small black markings just above the outer margin of the hind wing.

Male Common Cerulean - The upper sides are a pale non-metallic cerulean, the palest colour of all three. The forewing has a wide black margin, wider than the margins of the Milky or Metallic Cerulean. There is a single row of black spots above the outer margin of the hind wing.

Female Milky Cerulean - The tornal spot on the underside is pentagonal in shape and is crowned lightly with orange. The dark row of spots just below the outer margin of the forewing is roughly diamond shaped, and the row of small dark markings immediately below it are shaped like chevrons. The wings are much more rounded than those of others.

Female Metallic Cerulean - The underside tornal spot is much larger and broadly crowned with orange. The outer margins of the forewings have 2 rows of dark markings that are more or less rectangular.

Female Common Cerulean - The second band on the underside of the forewing is unequal to the first, the first been the one closest to the base of the wing and commencing on the front margin. The first two bands are more or less equal in size in the Milky and Metallic Ceruleans.