Anthene butleri

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Pale hairtail
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Lycaenidae
Genus: Anthene
Species:
A. butleri
Binomial name
Anthene butleri
(Oberthür, 1880)[1]
Synonyms
  • Lycaena (Lampides) butleri Oberthür, 1880
  • Lycaenesthes livida Trimen, 1881
  • Anthene livida galla Stempffer, 1947
  • Anthene livida stempfferi Storace, 1954

Anthene butleri, the pale hairtail or Butler's ciliate blue, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found from South Africa to Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia. In South Africa it is found in coastal lowland forest in KwaZulu-Natal, from the coast to Kosi Bay, inland across the Makathini Flats.

The wingspan is 23–28 mm for males and 25–32 mm for females. Adults are on wing year-round, with a peak in the warmer months.[2]

The larvae feed on Kalanchoe crenata, Kalanchoe lugardii and Cotyledon species, including Cotyledon orbiculata .

Subspecies[edit]

  • A. b. butleri (Ethiopia, southern Sudan, northern Uganda, north-west Kenya)
  • A. b. arabicus Gabriel, 1954 (Yemen)
  • A. b. galla Stempffer, 1947 (northern Kenya, southern Ethiopia)
  • A. b. livida (Trimen, 1881) (Cape, Orange Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Eswatini, Transvaal, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Tanzania)
  • A. b. stempfferi Storace, 1954 (Kenya: central to the Teita Hills, Tanzania)

References[edit]

  1. ^ Anthene at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
  2. ^ Woodhall, Steve (2005). Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa. Cape Town, South Africa: Struik. ISBN 978-1-86872-724-7.