| Cigaritis natalensis | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Lycaenidae |
| Genus: | Cigaritis |
| Species: | C. natalensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Cigaritis natalensis (Westwood, 1851)[1] |
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| Synonyms | |
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The Natal Bar or Natal Barred Blue (Cigaritis natalensis) is a butterfly of the Lycaenidae family. It is found in South Africa, from the East Cape along the coast to KwaZulu-Natal, Swaziland, the Orange Free State, Mpumalanga, Gauteng, the Limpopo Province, the North West Province and part of the North Cape. It is also present in Botswana.
The wingspan is 25-32.5 mm for males and 26.5-34 mm for females. Adults are on wing year round with peaks from September to October and from March to May[2].
The larvae feed on Canthium inerme, Clerodendron glabrum and Ximenia caffra.