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Red-Banded Hairstreak

Calycopis cecrops[3]

The red-banded hairstreak is a small gray-brown butterfly with a white and red-orange band across the underside of the wings and threadlike tails on each hindwing.[1][2]

Group
Insect
Order
Lepidoptera
Family
Lycaenidae
US records
28 states
Sources
3 cited
Updated
2026-10-16
Red-banded hairstreak butterfly with an orange-banded gray underside on goldenrod
Red-banded hairstreak butterfly with an orange-banded gray underside on goldenrod. Photo: Brighton Lee, public domain (CC0), via iNaturalist
On this page
  1. Identification
  2. Where it lives
  3. Biology
  4. Damage and signs
  5. Health risk
  6. Control
  7. Related profiles
  8. Common questions
  9. Sources

How to identify it

  • The wingspan is about 3/4 to 1 3/16 inches.[1][2]
  • The underside is tannish gray with a white line edged by a wide red-orange band; each hindwing has two tails and an eyespot between them.[1][2]
  • The upper side is blackish brown, and females often show iridescent blue, especially in spring.[2]
  • Caterpillars are brownish, up to about 1/2 inch, with a faint stripe down the back and a coat of short hairs.[1][2]

Where it lives

Found from Maryland to southeast Kansas and eastern Texas and throughout Florida, straying north to Wisconsin and Minnesota; in Missouri mostly south of the Missouri River.[1][2]

US map: public records from 28 states since 1990 (GBIF).

Biology and life cycle

There are several broods, flying from about May to October in the north and year-round in Florida; Missouri reports three broods from mid-April into October.[1][2]

Females lay single eggs under dead leaves on the ground near host plants, and the caterpillars overwinter.[1][2]

Perching adults rub their hindwings, and the tails and eyespot form a false head that draws predators away from the real one.[1]

Damage and signs

  • No damage: the caterpillars feed mostly on fallen, decaying leaves of sumac, wax myrtle, oaks and mallows on the ground, occasionally on live leaves.[2]

Health risk

Harmless to people and pets.[1][2]

Control

Prevention

No control is needed; the caterpillars eat leaf litter, and adults visit flowers and moist ground.[2]

Common questions

Are hairstreak caterpillars garden pests?
No; red-banded hairstreak caterpillars mostly eat decaying leaves on the ground.[2]
Why do the wings have tails?
The tails and eyespot look like a head and can draw a predator's attack away from the butterfly's body.[1]

Sources

  1. University of Florida IFAS Extension (EDIS, Featured Creatures), “Red-Banded Hairstreak, Calycopis cecrops (EENY-108).” ask.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/IN265 (accessed 2026-10-16)
  2. Missouri Department of Conservation, “Red-Banded Hairstreak (Field Guide).” mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/red-banded-hairstreak (accessed 2026-10-16)
  3. iNaturalist, “Calycopis cecrops taxon page (order and family).” www.inaturalist.org/taxa/122281 (accessed 2026-10-06)

Updated 2026-10-16. Built from sourced records. Spot an error? Tell us.