Dira jansei

Janse's widow
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Nymphalidae
Genus: Dira
Species:
D. jansei
Binomial name
Dira jansei
(Swierstra, 1911)
Synonyms
  • Leptoneura jansei Swierstra, 1911[1]

Dira jansei, or Janse's widow, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found on wooded hillsides in the savanna/grassland ecotone in Limpopo's Strydpoortberg and Drakensberg and from the Makapans Cave to Mariepskop.

Description

The wingspan is 48–55 mm for males and 52–58 mm for females. Adults are on wing from late February to mid-March. There is one generation per year.[2]

Habitat and behavior

It is observed residing near steep-grass covered slopes, with loose rocks, a terrain which is hazardous.[3]

The larvae feed on various Poaceae species, including Ehrharta erecta and Pennisetum clandestinum.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dira jansei.
  1. ^ "Dira Hübner, [1819]" 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.
  3. ^ Woodhall, Steve (2001). "Looking for Dira". Metamorphosis. 12 (2). The Lepidopterists' Society of Africa: 50–52. ISSN 1018-6490 – via Lepsoc. {{cite journal}}: Check |issn= value (help)


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