Dark grass blue
This small blue butterfly flies year round from North Africa across the Middle East to Australia, crossing more of the world than almost any other blue butterfly.
| Where | Open scrub, waste ground and gardens |
|---|---|
| Size | 15 to 20 mm wingspan |
| When | March to January |
The Dark grass blue is a small butterfly with a dusky purple brown upperside, darker than most related blues, and a pale grey brown underside marked with small dark spots edged in white.
Adults fly close to the ground over open, sparsely vegetated ground such as waste land, scrub and gardens, and are on the wing throughout the year across most of their range.
Traits
Habitat
Grassland
Colour
Blue, Brown, Grey
Active
Day
To people
Common on bare, sunny ground in gardens and waste land; harmless to people.
Activity through the year
Often confused with
Upperside is a pale, silvery violet blue, distinctly brighter than the Dark grass blue's dusky purple brown.
Questions
Is the Dark grass blue dangerous to people?
Common on bare, sunny ground in gardens and waste land; harmless to people.
When can you see the Dark grass blue?
The Dark grass blue can be seen from March to January, by day.
Plate retouched from a photo by ghulesubhash, CC0, iNaturalist Licence
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Butterflies and moths›Blues and coppers›Zizeeria
Last updated 2026-09-27. Every entry is checked against published sources.