Dixeia charina

Dixeia charina, the African small white, is a butterfly in the family Pieridae and is native to southeastern Africa.

African small white
Female
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Pieridae
Genus:	Dixeia
Species:	D. charina
Binomial name
Dixeia charina (Boisduval, [1836])
Synonyms
Pieris charina Boisduval, [1836] Pinacopteryx nigropunctata Sharpe, 1890 Pieris anactorie Doubleday, 1842 Pieris gerda dagera Suffert, 1904 Pieris liliana anali Suffert, 1904 Belenois liliana Grose-Smith, 1889 Pinacopteryx gerda Grose-Smith and Kirby, 1893 Dixeia doxo liliana f. transiens Talbot, 1943 Dixeia doxo liliana f. immaculata Talbot, 1943 Dixeia doxo liliana f. ochreata Talbot, 1943 Pinacopteryx lambertoni Le Cerf, 1921 Pinacopteryx narena Grose-Smith, 1898 Pinacopteryx liliana pulverulenta Dixey, 1929 Dixeia doxo septentrionalis Bernardi, 1958 Pieris simana Hopffer, 1855

The wingspan is 34–40 mm in males and 36–42 mm in females. Its flight period is year-round.

Larvae feed on Capparis citrifolia and Capparis sepiaria.

Subspecies

Listed alphabetically:

• D. c. charina (southern Mozambique, South Africa, Eswatini)
• D. c. dagera (Suffert, 1904) (Tanzania)
• D. c. liliana (Grose-Smith, 1889) (eastern and coastal Kenya, northern Tanzania)
• D. c. narena (Grose-Smith, 1898) (Madagascar)
• D. c. pulverulenta (Dixey, 1929) (Kenya)
• D. c. septentrionalis Bernardi, 1958 (eastern and northern Ethiopia)
• D. c. simana Hopffer, 1855 (northern Mozambique)

References

• Seitz, A. Die Gross-Schmetterlinge der Erde 13: Die Afrikanischen Tagfalter. Plate XIII 14