Calephelis wrighti Wright's Metalmark

The live photograph shown here, a creative commons CC image, was taken in Borrego Springs, CA by a woman intent on protecting their habitat. Butterflies of America has many more images of this striking metalmark butterfly.

Calephelis wrighti has a brown or subdued brown-orange dorsal upper side and a buff, light yellow underside. Both sides of the wings have distinctive metallic scales and are adorned with subtle gray dots and dashes forming a concentric pattern.

The adult will feed on blossoms of the Compositae host plant, Bebbia juncea, one of the few plants in the Composite family with ray-less blossoms.

There are 7 species of Calephelis in the United States. Other adult Calephelis species will feed on:
Achillea
Asclepias
Conoclinium
Coreopsis
Eupatorium
Melilotus
Oxalis
Rudbeckia
Solidago
Taraxacum

Butterflies and Moths has information about Calephelis wrighti range and host plants. The Natural History Museum shows additional host plants for other Calephelis species that includes Baccharis, Clematis, Encelia, Eupatorium, Ageratina, and Cirsium. The USDA has a lot of information about Bebbia juncea, as does Calflora.