Spialia depauperata, the wandering sandman or deprived grizzled skipper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found from Kenya to Natal and in Uganda.

Spialia depauperata
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Hesperiidae
Genus: Spialia
Species:
S. depauperata
Binomial name
Spialia depauperata
(Strand, 1911)[1]
Synonyms
  • Hesperia ferax var. depauperata Strand, 1911
  • Syrichthus rehfousi Oberthür, 1912

The wingspan is 23–28 mm for males and 31–33 mm for females. Adults are on wing year-round in warmer areas with peaks from September to December and from January to March in southern Africa.[2]

The larvae feed on Melhania species.

Subspecies

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  • Spialia depauperata depauperata (Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Zambia, Mozambique)
  • Spialia depauperata australis de Jong, 1978 (Mozambique, Zimbabwe, northern and eastern Botswana, Namibia, Eswatini, South Africa: from northern KwaZulu-Natal, and Mpumalanga to the Limpopo Province)

References

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  1. ^ Spialia 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.