If you want to attract Gossamer-Winged butterflies to your garden, check out the list of host and nectar plants below for each of the twenty-four species that visit Tennessee!
| Gossamer-Winged Species | Host Plants | Nectar Plants | Gossamer-Winged Species |
| Harvester | Alder Tree (Alnus) | Asters (Asteraceae, Family) | Great Purple Hairstreak, White M Hairstreak, Red-banded Hairstreak, Eastern Tailed-Blue, Silvery Blue |
| Reakirt’s Blue, Eastern Tailed-Blue | Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) | Basil (Ocimum basilicum) | Gray Hairstreak |
| White M Hairstreak | American Basswood (Tilia americana) | Blazing Stars (Liatris spp.) | Gray Hairstreak, Eastern Tailed-Blue |
| Henry’s Elfin | American Holly (Ilex opaca) | Blackberry (Rubus fruticosus) | Bronze Copper, Spring Azure |
| Early Hairstreak | Beech Trees (Fagus sylvatica) | Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) | American Copper, Brown Elfin, Eastern Pine Elfin |
| Harvester, Bronze Copper | Bitter Dock (Rumex obtusifolius) | Buttercups (Ranunculus) | American Copper, Silvery Blue |
| Bronze Copper, Striped Hairstreak, Henry’s Elfin | Black Cherry (Prunus serotina) | Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa) | Bronze Copper, Coral Hairstreak, Edwards’ Hairstreak, Juniper Hairstreak, Gray Hairstreak, Early Hairstreak, Eastern Tailed-Blue |
| Coral Hairstreak, Striped Hairstreak, Summer Azure, Appalachian Azure | Black Cohosh (Actaea racemosa) | Catmint (Nepeta spp.) | Gray Hairstreak |
| Brown Elfin, Henry’s Elfin | Black Huckleberry (Gaylussacia baccata) | Chickweed (Stellaria media) | Eastern Pine Elfin |
| Oak Hairstreak | Black Oak (Quercus velutina) | Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana) | Juniper Hairstreak |
| Edwards’ Hairstreak | Blackberry (Rubus fruticosus) | Chrysanthemum | Gray Hairstreak |
| Striped Hairstreak, Oak Hairstreak | Blackjack Oak (Quercus marilandica) | Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) | Bronze Copper, Coral Hairstreak, Edwards’ Hairstreak, Banded Hairstreak, Striped Hairstreak, Oak Hairstreak, Eastern Pine Elfin, White M Hairstreak, Gray Hairstreak, Red-banded Hairstreak, Early Hairstreak, Eastern Tailed-Blue, Spring Azure |
| Edwards’ Hairstreak | Box Elder (Acer negundo) | Coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata spp.) | Red-banded Hairstreak |
| Banded Hairstreak | Chestnut (Castanea dentata) | Creeping Phlox (Phlox stolonifera) | American Copper, Great Purple Hairstreak |
| Banded Hairstreak | Chickasaw Plum (Prunus angustifolia) | Dandelions (Taraxacum officinale) | Eastern Tailed-Blue, Silvery Blue |
| Coral Hairstreak, Striped Hairstreak | Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana) | Dogbane (Apocynum cannabinum) | Coral Hairstreak, Edwards’ Hairstreak, Banded Hairstreak, Striped Hairstreak, Juniper Hairstreak, Gray Hairstreak, Red-banded Hairstreak, Spring Azure |
| Coral Hairstreak | Curly Dock (Rumex crispus) | Fleabane (Erigeron) | Red-banded Hairstreak, Early Hairstreak |
| American Copper, Bronze Copper, Eastern Tailed-Blue | Downy Milk Pea (Galactia volubilis) | Floss Flower (Ageratum houstonianum) | Eastern Tailed-Blue |
| Red-banded Hairstreak | Dwarf Sumac (Rhus copallinum) | Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida) | Banded Hairstreak, White M Hairstreak |
| Henry’s Elfin | Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis) | Glade Cress (Leavenworthia stylosa) | Henry’s Elfin |
| Eastern Pine Elfin | Eastern White Pine (Pinus strobus) | Goldenrod (Solidago spp.) | Great Purple Hairstreak, Edwards’ Hairstreak, Striped Hairstreak, White M Hairstreak, Gray Hairstreak, Red-banded Hairstreak |
| Henry’s Elfin | Fire Cherry (Prunus pensylvanica) | Hawthorn (Crataegus) | Henry’s Elfin |
| Spring Azure | Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida) | Heliotrope (Heliotropium) | Gray Hairstreak |
| Red-banded Hairstreak | Fragrant Sumac (Rhus aromatica) | Indigo Bush (Amorpha fruticosa) | |
| Dusky Azure | Goat’s Beard (Aruncus dioicus) | Ironweed (Vernonia fasciculata) | Gray Hairstreak |
| Harvester | Greenbrier (Smilax rotundifolia) | Joe-Pye weed (Eupatorium purpureum) | Red-banded Hairstreak |
| Harvester, Striped Hairstreak | Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) | Lanceleaf Gumweed (Grindelia lanceolata) | Juniper Hairstreak |
| Harvester, Early Hairstreak | Hazlenut Trees (Corylus) | Lantana (Lantana camara) | Eastern Tailed-Blue |
| Banded Hairstreak | Hickory Trees (Carya) | Leafy Elephant’s Foot (Elephantopus carolinianus) | Summer Azure |
| Banded Hairstreak, Brown Elfin, Henry’s Elfin | Highbush Blueberries (Vaccinium corymbosum) | Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica) | Gray Hairstreak |
| Reakirt’s Blue | Indigo Bush (Psorothamnus fremontii) | Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria) | Edwards’ Hairstreak, Banded Hairstreak, Striped Hairstreak |
| Silvery Blue | Bitter Vetch (Lathyrus linifolius) | Milk Vetch (Astragalus) | Reakirt’s Blue, Silvery Blue |
| Silvery Blue | Locoweed (Oxytropis) | Mint (Mentha spp.) | Gray Hairstreak, Reakirt’s Blue |
| Summer Azure | Leafy Elephant’s Foot (Elephantopus carolinianus) | Mistflower (Conoclinium coelestinum) | Gray Hairstreak, Red-banded Hairstreak |
| Eastern Pine Elfin | Loblolly Pines (Pinus taeda) | New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus americanus) | Coral Hairstreak, Edwards’ Hairstreak, Banded Hairstreak, Striped Hairstreak, Red-banded Hairstreak, Spring Azure, Summer Azure |
| Silvery Blue | Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) | Oregano (Origanum vulgare) | American Copper, Gray Hairstreak |
| Brown Elfin, Henry’s Elfin | Lowbush Blueberries (Vaccinium angustifolium) | Ox-eye Daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare) | Juniper Hairstreak, Early Hairstreak |
| Silvery Blue | Lupine (Lupinus) | Pentas (Pentas lanceolata) | Eastern Tailed-Blue |
| Gray Hairstreak | Mallows (Malva sylvestris ) | Prairie Mimosa (Desmanthus illinoensis) | Bronze Copper |
| Harvester | Maple Trees (Acer) | Privet (Ligustrum spp) | Spring Azure |
| Harvester, Summer Azure | Meadowsweets (Spiraea) | Purple Prairie Clovers (Dalea purpurea) | Reakirt’s Blue |
| Reakirt’s Blue, Eastern Tailed-Blue | Milk Vetch (Astragalus) | Queen Anne’s Lace (Daucus carota) | American Copper |
| Great Purple Hairstrea | Mistletoe (obligate hemiparasitic) | Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium) | Juniper Hairstreak |
| Great Purple Hairstreak, Brown Elfin | Mountain Laurel (Kalmia latifolia) | Red Clover (Trifolium pratense) | Bronze Copper |
| Summer Azure | New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus americanus) | Shepherd’s Needle (Bidens alba) | Great Purple Hairstreak, Juniper Hairstreak, Eastern Tailed-Blue |
| Red-banded Hairstreak | Oaks (Quercus) | Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum) | White M Hairstreak |
| Striped Hairstreak | Patience Dock (Rumex patientia) | Spicebush (Lindera benzoin) | Brown Elfin |
| Bronze Copper, Eastern Pine Elfin | Pitch Pine Pinus rigida) | Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica) | Easten Tailed-Blue |
| Reakirt’s Blue | Prairie Mimosa (Desmanthus illinoensis) | Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina) | Edwards’ Hairstreak, Banded Hairstreak, Striped Hairstreak |
| Reakirt’s Blue | Purple Prairie Clovers (Dalea purpurea) | Sumac (Rhus) | Henry’s Elfin, White M Hairstreak, Red-banded Hairstreak |
| Eastern Pine Elfin, Juniper Hairstreak | Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana) | Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) | Bronze Copper, Coral Hairstreak, Edwards’ Hairstreak, Gray Hairstreak, Early Hairstreak, Easter Tailed-Blue |
| Eastern Tailed-Blue | Red Clover (Trifolium pratense) | Swamp Privet (Forestiera) | Henry’s Elfin |
| Oak Hairstreak | Red Oak (Quercus rubra) | Sweet Clover (Melilotus albus) | Juniper Hairstreak, Gray Hairstreak, Eastern Tailed-Blue, Slivery Blue |
| Banded Hairstreak | Scrub Oak (Quercus gambelii,) | Sweet Pepperbush (Clethra alnifolia) | Great Purple Hairstreak, White M Hairstreak, Gray Hairstreak, Red-banded Hairstreak |
| Edwards’ Hairstreak | Sheep Sorrel (Rumex acetosella) | Sweetspire (Itea virginica) | Oak Hairstreak, White M Hairstreak |
| American Copper, Eastern Pine Elfin | Shortleaf Pine (Pinus echinata) | Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) | Gray Hairstreak |
| Summer Azure | Smooth Sumac (Rhus glabra) | Verbena (Vervain spp.) | Gray Hairstreak |
| Summer Azure | Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum) | Virgin’s Bower (Clematis virginiana) | American Copper, Summer Azure |
| Red-banded Hairstreak | Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina) | White Clover (Trifolium repens) | Edwards’ Hairstreak, Banded Hairstreak, Striped Hairstreak, Eastern Pine Elfin |
| Brown Elfin | Sugar Huckleberry (Celtis laevigata) | White Sweet Clover (Melilotus albus) | Eastern Pine Elfin, Gray Hairstreak, Reakirt’s Blue, Juniper Hairstreak |
| Bronze Copper | Swamp Dock (Rumex verticillatus) | Wild Carrot (Daucus carota) | Juniper Hairstreak |
| Bronze Copper | Sweet Clover (Melilotus albus) | Wild Cherry (Prunus avium | Red-banded Hairstreak |
| Silvery Blue | Veiny Pea (Lathyrus venosus) | Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum) | Dusky Azure |
| Eastern Pine Elfin | Virginia Pine (Pinus virginiana) | Wild Plum (Prunus americana) | Brown Elfin, White M Hairstreak |
| Walnut Trees (Juglans) | Wild Strawberry (Fragaria vesca) | Eastern Tailed-Blue | |
| Banded Hairstreak, Red-banded Hairstreak | Wax Myrtle (Myrica cerifera) | Willow (Salix) | Henry’s Elfin |
| Reakirt’s Blue | White Clover (Trifolium repens) | Winter Cress (Barbarea vulgaris) | American Copper, Brown Elfin, Juniper Hairstreak, Gray Hairstreak, Eastern Tailed-Blue |
| Reakirt’s Blue, Summer Azure | White Crownbeard (Verbesina virginica) | Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) | Banded Hairstreak, Red-banded Hairstreak |
| Reakirt’s Blue | White Sweet Clover (Melilotus albus) | ||
| Oak Hairstreak, White M Hairstreak | White Oak (Quercus alba) | ||
| Edwards’ Hairstreak, Banded Hairstreak | Wild Cherry (Prunus avium | ||
| Coral Hairstreak, Striped Hairstreak, Henry’s Elfin | Wild Plum (Prunus americana) | ||
| Coral Hairstreak, Striped Hairstreak | Willow (Salix) | ||
| Striped Hairstreak, Red-Banded Hairstreak | Winged Sumac (Rhus copallinum) | ||
| Harvester | Witch Hazel (Hamamelis spp.) | ||
| Henry’s Elfin | Yaupon (Ilex vomitoria) | ||
| Reakirt’s Blue, Eastern Tailed-Blue | Yellow Sweet Clover (Melilotus officinalis) | ||
| Eastern Tailed-Blue | Yellow Wild Indigo (Baptisia tinctoria) |