Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeas)

About Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeas)

• Kingdom: Animals
• Phylum: Arthropods
• Class: Insects
• Order: Butterflies and Moths
• Family: Gossamer-winged Butterflies

Lycaena phlaeas, the small copper, American copper, or common copper, is a butterfly of the Lycaenids or gossamer-winged butterfly family. According to Guppy and Shepard (2001), its specific name phlaeas is said to be derived either from the Greek φλέγω (phlégo), "to burn up", or from the Latin floreo, "to flourish".