Chrysoritis palmus
| Chrysoritis palmus | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Lycaenidae |
| Genus: | Chrysoritis |
| Species: | C. palmus |
| Binomial name | |
| Chrysoritis palmus (Stoll, [1781])[1] | |
| Synonyms | |
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The Water Opal (Chrysoritis palmus) is a butterfly of the Lycaenidae family. It is found in South Africa.
The wingspan is 21–29 mm for males and 25–31 mm for females. Adults of ssp. palmus are on year from September to April, with a peak in December. The peak for ssp. margueritae is January to March. There are several generations per year.[2]
The larvae feed on Aspalathus sarcantha, Aspalathus carnosa, Chrysanthemoides monilifera, Berzelia intermedia, Berzelia lanuginosa and Berzelia abrotanoides. They are attended to by Crematogaster peringueyi ants.
Subspecies
- Chrysoritis palmus palmus (West Cape)
- Chrysoritis palmus margueritae (Dickson, 1982) (West Cape to East Cape)
References
- ↑ Chrysoritis, Site of Markku Savela
- ↑ Woodhall, S. Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa, Cape Town: Struik Publishers, 2005.
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