Butterflies, Moths, Dragonflies & Damselflies of Dayton, Ohio

HENRY'S ELFIN

This Henry's Elfin butterfly was rubbing his hindwings together, giving us a peek at the orange dorsal surface. Henry's Elfins almost never rest with their wings open. 

Henry's Elfins can often be found sipping moisture from damp ground on sunny forest trails. 

Notice the prominent white dash on the hindwing. That white mark and the tails make good field marks for this species. 

Henry's Elfins fly for only a few weeks in early spring, when their redbud trees are in bloom. Their flight period usually occurs in April (or sometimes early May, if the weather was cold in April). 

Henry's Elfin. In our area, these butterflies use redbud trees as host plants. (They use other hosts in different geographic regions.) Look for Henry's Elfins near established groves of redbud trees. 

This Henry's Elfin was photographed at Twin Creek MetroPark. Twin Creek, Germantown MetroPark, and Cox Arboretum are three good locations to find these tiny butterflies. Ohio has other species of Elfins in different parts of the state, but Henry's Elfin is the only one I have seen in the Dayton area. 

Some Henry's Elfins have a light dusting of metallic green scales, but the effect is usually subtle.