Capys alphaeus, the protea scarlet or orange-banded protea, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in South Africa.

Capys alphaeus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Lycaenidae
Genus: Capys
Species:
C. alphaeus
Binomial name
Capys alphaeus
(Cramer, [1777])[1]
Synonyms
  • Papilio alphaeus Cramer, [1777]

The wingspan is 31–40 mm for males and 32–47 mm for females. Adults are on wing from August to November and from February to April in two main generations.[2]

The larvae feed on the flower buds of various Protea species, including P. cynaroides, P. roupelliae, P. subvestita, P. repens and P. grandiceps.

Subspecies

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  • Capys alphaeus alphaeus (from the Cape Peninsula to the Kouebokkeveld Mountains and southern Namaqualand, the Western Cape and then to the Eastern Cape)
  • Capys alphaeus extentus Quickelberge, 1979 (from the Eastern Cape along the mountains to the eastern part of the Free State and the KwaZulu-Natal Drakensberg, Eswatini, Mpumalanga and Limpopo)

References

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  1. ^ "Capys Hewitson, 1865" 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.