Dira clytus

Cape autumn widow
D. clytus depicted in Seitz's Fauna Africana
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Nymphalidae
Genus: Dira
Species:
D. clytus
Binomial name
Dira clytus
(Linnaeus, 1764)
  Range of D. clytus in southernmost South Africa
Synonyms
  • Papilio clytus Linnaeus, 1764
  • Leptoneura clytus (Linnaeus, 1764)
  • Papilio tisiphone von Rottemburg, 1775

Dira clytus, the Cape autumn widow, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found in South Africa.[1]

The wingspan is 45โ€“55 mm. Adults of ssp. clytus are on wing from late February to April and of ssp. eurina from late February to late March. There is one generation per year.[2]

The larvae feed on various Poaceae species, including Ehrharta erecta, Pennisetum clandestinum, Stipa dregeana, Panicum deustrum, Stenotaphrum glabrum and Stenotaphrum secundatum.

Subspecies

  • Dira clytus clytus โ€” south-western Cape
  • Dira clytus eurina Quickelberge, 1978 โ€” southern Cape

References

  1. ^ Dira 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.