Metisella willemi

Netted Sylph
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Hesperiidae
Genus: Metisella
Species: M. willemi
Binomial name
Metisella willemi
(Wallengren, 1857)[1]
Synonyms
  • Heteropterus willemi Wallengren, 1857
  • Cyclopides willemi
  • Cyclopides cheles Hewitson, 1868

The Netted Sylph (Metisella willemi) is a butterfly of the Hesperiidae family. It is found from Transvaal, Botswana, and Zimbabwe to Kenya, Uganda, and Somalia. The habitat consists of savanna (especially along streams fringed by trees that provide an almost closed canopy) and densely wooded clumps of bush.[2]

The wingspan is 30–32 mm. Adults are on wing from December to May (with a peak from February to March). There is one extended generation per year.[3]

The larvae feed on Setaria species.

References

  1. Metisella, Site of Markku Savela
  2. Afrotropical Butterflies: Hesperiidae - Subfamily Heteropterinae
  3. Woodhall, S. Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa, Cape Town: Struik Publishers, 2005.
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