Geranium bronze
| Geranium bronze | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Lycaenidae |
| Genus: | Cacyreus |
| Species: | C. marshalli |
| Binomial name | |
| Cacyreus marshalli Butler, 1897 | |
The geranium bronze or brun des pélargoniums in French (Cacyreus marshalli) is a butterfly in the family Lycaenidae.
The wingspan is 15–23 mm for males and 18–27 mm for females. Adults are on wing year round in warmer areas, but usually from August to May in South Africa. At higher altitudes adults are on wing in December and January.[1] It is brown with a fine black edge interlaced with white and a very thin tail. The underside is grey-brown with dark bands. The caterpillar feeds on cultivated Pelargonium geraniums, as well as on species of the related Geranium genus.
The species is native of South Africa. It has, however, been introduced (deliberately or accidentally) to Mediterranean Europe (initially the Balaeric Islands), where it has spread as a pest of cultivated Pelargonium geraniums, which also originate in South Africa. It was first recorded in the United Kingdom in Sussex in 1997 (also on geranium), and has been recorded several times since. In the UK, all sightings should be reported to DEFRA. It appeared in Malta on March/April 2007. The first location that established itself was at San Gwann but in a few months took all over the island. Recently it has also been spotted in Mġarr, Xagħra, Gozo and in Katerini.
Gallery
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Imago, underside
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Imago, underside
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Imago,upperside
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Larva
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Two caterpillars inside a geranium stem
References
- ↑ Woodhall, S. Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa, Cape Town: Struik Publishers, 2005.
- J. Kleinekuhle: Zur Indigenität und Ausbreitung des afrikanischen Bläulings Cacyreus marshalli in Südeuropa. Atalanta 26: 209-214, 1995
- J. H. R. Thiele, W. A. Nässig: Der Pelargonienbläuling auch in Deutschland. Nachrichten des Entomologischen Vereins Apollo, Frankfurt am Main, N. F. 20 (3/4): 290, 2000
- Tom Tolman, Richard Lewington: Die Tagfalter Europas und Nordwestafrikas Franckh-Kosmos Verlags-GmbH & Co, Stuttgart 1998, ISBN 3-440-07573-7
- G. Tiberglien, « Les Lycène des Géraniums, Cacyreus marshalli : état 2002 d'une espèce invasive », dans « Bull. Soc. Sc. Nat. Ouest Fr. N. S. », n° 24, 4, 2002 (p. 205-214)
- Xavier Mérit, « Cacyreus marshalli Butler, 1898, nouvelle espèce pour l'Alsace (Lepidoptera, Lycaenidae) » dans « Bulletin des Lépidoptéristes de France, 2003, 12 (26) (p. 108).
- Xavier Mérit et Véronique Mérit, « Cacyreus marshalli (Butler, 1898), espèce nouvelle pour les départements de la Drôme et de la Loire (Lepidoptera Lycaenidae) », dans « Alexanor », 2002 (2004), 22 (7) (p. 415-416).
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