Lycaenidae : Polyommatinae
African Grass Blue
ZIZEERIA knysna (Trimen, 1862)
African Grass Blue
ZIZEERIA knysna (Trimen, 1862)
Description
Alternative Name: Dark Grass Blue
Wingspan: 15-25mm
Worldwide Distribution: North Africa : Canary Islands : South Portugal : South Spain : Italy : Egypt : Israel : Syria : Iran : Lebanon : East Saudi Arabia : Turkey : Cyprus : South Asia : Australia
European Conservation Status -
Habitat: Various kinds of grassy places : Waste Ground : Road verges : Gardens
Flight Period: January-December : Polyvoltine : overlapping broods : numbers increase from spring to summer.
Larva: The relationship between ants and the larva is typical of the "Blue" butterflies
Overwinters as: Larva
Observations: The small size and dark colouring of this small butterfly makes it easy to overlook.
Flies very close to the ground in cultivated areas,agricultural land, riverbanks,waste ground,hot dry riverbeds and agricultural unploughed ground where the larval food plants can be found.
The butterflies photographed below were on very dry ground adjacent to the coast which was being used as a rubbish tip and yet still many species of butterflies were found including the Lesser Fiery Copper, Eastern Bath white and Clouded Yellow.
The butterlfy is very active barely stopping but a few seconds to feed before moving on to the next nectar plant making it very difficult to photgraph and was very frustrating in not opening it wings to display the purple colour of the male.
The male upperside is blue with a broad black marginal band on both forewing and hingwing whereas the female upperside tends to be dark brown with a blue tone towards the basal area.
The butterfly can be seen virtually all year round in the hottest countries within its range and in Spain from spring to autumn.
Wingspan: 15-25mm
Worldwide Distribution: North Africa : Canary Islands : South Portugal : South Spain : Italy : Egypt : Israel : Syria : Iran : Lebanon : East Saudi Arabia : Turkey : Cyprus : South Asia : Australia
European Conservation Status -
- Not Applicable - Europe on edge of range for this butterfly
- Lycaena knysna Trimen, 1862
- Polyommatus karsandra Moore, 1865
- S Africa
Habitat: Various kinds of grassy places : Waste Ground : Road verges : Gardens
Flight Period: January-December : Polyvoltine : overlapping broods : numbers increase from spring to summer.
Larva: The relationship between ants and the larva is typical of the "Blue" butterflies
Overwinters as: Larva
Observations: The small size and dark colouring of this small butterfly makes it easy to overlook.
Flies very close to the ground in cultivated areas,agricultural land, riverbanks,waste ground,hot dry riverbeds and agricultural unploughed ground where the larval food plants can be found.
The butterflies photographed below were on very dry ground adjacent to the coast which was being used as a rubbish tip and yet still many species of butterflies were found including the Lesser Fiery Copper, Eastern Bath white and Clouded Yellow.
The butterlfy is very active barely stopping but a few seconds to feed before moving on to the next nectar plant making it very difficult to photgraph and was very frustrating in not opening it wings to display the purple colour of the male.
The male upperside is blue with a broad black marginal band on both forewing and hingwing whereas the female upperside tends to be dark brown with a blue tone towards the basal area.
The butterfly can be seen virtually all year round in the hottest countries within its range and in Spain from spring to autumn.
Photo Gallery : Click photo for larger image
Larval Food Plants Worldwide
Note - Plants hyperlinked in red below take the visitor to the relevant plant page on"Plants for a Future" website
where further information like photos,physical
characteristics,habitats,edible uses,medicinal
uses,cultivation,propagation,range,height etc. are clearly listed.
- Plant Families - in bold red below takes the visitor to the relevant "Lepi-plants" page where other butterflies & moths using the plants below are listed.
- Amaranthaceae - Amaranth Family
- Amaranthus deflexus - Perennial Pigweed - Large Fruit Amaranth
- Fabaceae - Leguminosea - The Pulse - Bean - Pea - Legume Family
- Medicago arborea - Tree Medick - Moon Trefoil
- Medicago lupulina - Black Medic - Medick
- Medicago minima - Bur medick - Burclover
- Medicago sativa - Alfalfa - Lucerne
- Medicago tribuloides - Barrel Medick - Barrel Clover
- Melilotus messanensis - Southern Melilot
- Oxalidaceae - Wood Sorrel Family
- Oxalis corniculata - Creeping Woodsorrel- Procumbent Yellow-Sorrel - Yellow Oxalis
- Polygonaceae - Docks - Sorrels - Knotweeds - Smartweeds
- Polygonum equisetiforme - Horsetail Knotweed - Knotgrass
- Plumbaginaeae - Plumbago & Leadworts
- Armeria maritima - Thrift
- Armeria maritima - Thrift
- Zygophyllaceae - Bean - Caper Family
- Tribulus terrestris - Caltrop - Bindii - Bullhead - Burra gokharu
- Note - Larvae also feed on the following plant families
- Chenopodiaceae - Chenopodium - Goosefoots / Spinacia - Spinach etc
- Euphorbiaceae - Euphorbia
- Fabaceae - Leguminosea - Cajanus - Pea Shrubs / Lotus / Pisum - Peas / Trigonella -Fenugreek etc / Zornia
- Oxalidaceae - Oxalis - Wood Sorrels
- Zygophyllaceae - Tribulus - Bullhead etc
- Note - Larvae also feed on the following plant families
- Tribulus terrestris - Caltrop - Bindii - Bullhead - Burra gokharu
Larval Food Plants
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Taxonomy
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Kingdom:
Subkingdom: Phylum: Subphylum Class: Order: Superfamily: Family: Subfamily Tribe: Genus: Accepted Species Name: Type Species - ZIZEERIA: Original Species Name: Literary Ref: Type Locality: Subspecies: |
Animalia
Eumetozoa Arthropoda Hexapoda Insecta Lepidoptera Papilionoidea Lycaenidae Polyommatinae Polyommatini ZIZEERIA Chapman, 1910 Zizeeria knysna (Trimen, 1862) - Polyommatus karsandra Moore, 1865 - LYCAENA knysna (Trimen, 1862) = Papilio lysimon Hübner, 1798/1803 = Zizera lysimon Butler, 1900 = Zizera knysna Butler, 1900 = Zizeeria lysimon - Transactions of the Entomological Society of London. (3) 1 (3) : Title Page : p. 282 - South Africa - Z.k.corneliae Regteren Altena, 1948-Canary Isle |