Chrysoritis adonis, the Adonis opal, is a species of butterfly in the family Lycaenidae. It is endemic to South Africa, where it is found on the northern slopes of the Gydoberg, the Skurweberg, the Baviaanskloofberg and the Waboomberg, as well as the Elandskloof near Seweweekspoort.
| Adonis opal | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Lycaenidae |
| Genus: | Chrysoritis |
| Species: | C. adonis
|
| Binomial name | |
| Chrysoritis adonis (Pennington, 1962)
| |
| Synonyms | |
| |
The wingspan is 29–36 mm for males and 30–37 mm for females. Adults are on wing from October to March, with peaks in November and January. There are multiple generations per year.[1]
The larvae feed on Thesium and Zygophyllum species. They are attended to by Crematogaster liengmei ants.
Subspecies
edit- Chrysoritis adonis adonis (South Africa: Western Cape province)
- Chrysoritis adonis aridimontis Heath & Pringle, 2007 (South Africa: Western Cape province)
References
edit
Wikispecies has information related to Chrysoritis adonis.
- ^ Woodhall, Steve (2005). Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa. Cape Town, South Africa: Struik. ISBN 978-1-86872-724-7.
- Edge, D.A.; Selb, H.E.T.; Van Der Colff, D.; Patel, T. (2022). "Poecilmitis adonis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2022: e.T17839A162641138. Retrieved 29 December 2022.