Neozephyrus quercus iberica

[jonathan]

Hi people,
As most of you know, my speciality is not on Lycaenidae so I'm seeking some answers here. I have quite a long series of Neozephyrus quercus iberica from Spain. Amongst this series, I have the 2 males (the ones shown on the right) with some glaring purplish patch on the wings. Whatever position you put them, you'll always see these patches so it does not depend from which angle the specimens are viewed and the patch is present only on one side of the wings. The ones to the left are females and the ones in the centre are normal males. What causes this aberration in the males? Is it something related only to the males or even the females can have such aberrations?
Thanks
Jonathan

[nomihoudai]

Hi Jonathan, I assume this to be some kind of lipid (fat). There will be another refractive index in fat and therefore the wavelength of the wing will change a bit.