Metisella aegipan

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Mountain sylph
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Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Hesperiidae
Genus: Metisella
Species:
M. aegipan
Binomial name
Metisella aegipan
(Trimen, 1868) [1]
Synonyms
  • Cyclopides aegipanTrimen, 1868

Metisella aegipan, the mountain sylph or Shaka's ranger, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in the mountains of the Cape in South Africa and in Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Lesotho. The habitat consists of wetlands, marshy places, and grassy gullies in montane grassland. [2]

The wingspan is 28–34 mm for males and 28–36 mm for females. [3]

These small to medium-sized skippers are brown on the upperside and yellow brown on the underside. They have a yellow patch on the upperside forewing. [3]

Their flight period is between December and February with a single brood. [3]

Subspecies

Related Research Articles

<i>Metisella</i> Genus of butterflies

Metisella is a genus of skippers, commonly called sylphs, in the family Hesperiidae found in Africa. For other sylphs see genera Astictopterus, Willema, and Tsitana.

<i>Stygionympha wichgrafi</i> Species of butterfly

Stygionympha wichgrafi, or Wichgraf's brown, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

<i>Coeliades pisistratus</i> Species of butterfly

Coeliades pisistratus, the two-pip policeman, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae that occurs commonly in much of sub-Saharan Africa.

<i>Spialia delagoae</i> Species of butterfly

Spialia delagoae, the Delagoa sandman or Delagoa grizzled skipper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in Namibia, Botswana, Transvaal, Eswatini, KwaZulu-Natal, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Kenya. The habitat consists of moist and dry savanna.

Spialia asterodia, the star sandman or Asterodia sandman, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in South Africa from the western Cape to the southern part of the north Cape and across the east Cape to Lesotho, the Free State, Eswatini, western KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, the Limpopo Province, the eastern North West Province and Gauteng. It is also present in southern Mozambique and Zimbabwe. The habitat consists of grassland and grassy areas in fynbos, Karoo and Bushveld.

<i>Spialia diomus</i> Species of butterfly

Spialia diomus, the common sandman or Diomus grizzled skipper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in tropical Africa and south-western Arabia.

<i>Metisella malgacha</i> Species of butterfly

Metisella malgacha, the grassveld sylph, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in the Cape, Free State, Lesotho, Transvaal, and KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. The habitat consists of grassland and grassy areas in the fynbos and Karoo.

<i>Metisella metis</i> Species of butterfly

Metisella metis, the gold spotted sylph, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in the Cape and KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa.

<i>Willema willemi</i> Species of butterfly

Willema willemi, the netted sylph, is a species of butterfly in the family Hesperiidae. It is found from South Africa (Transvaal), Botswana, and Zimbabwe to Kenya, Uganda, and Somalia. The habitat consists of savanna and densely wooded clumps of bush.

Metisella meninx, the marsh sylph, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is endemic to the wet vleis of highland grassland in northern KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Gauteng, the northern part of the Free State and the extreme east of the North West Province. It has become extinct in many areas close to Johannesburg due to building developments.

<i>Metisella syrinx</i> Species of butterfly

Metisella syrinx, the bamboo sylph or bamboes-walsertjie, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is a rare and highly localised species which is only known from South Africa in the eastern Cape, through southern Lesotho to the extreme south of KwaZulu-Natal. The habitat consists of rocky areas on the summits of mountains, in montane grassland.

<i>Platylesches galesa</i> Species of butterfly

Platylesches galesa, the white-tail hopper or black hopper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in Transvaal, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. It is common in forest and woodland.

<i>Platylesches robustus</i> Species of butterfly

Platylesches robustus, the robust hopper or large hopper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in Zululand, Eswatini, Transvaal, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. The habitat consists of moist, frost-free savanna and the transitional zone between forest and Guinea savanna.

Platylesches picanini, the banded hopper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, south-western Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, northern Zambia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and South Africa. The habitat consists of forests, riparian vegetation along river courses, woodland, dry forests and Guinea savanna.

<i>Spialia mafa</i> Species of butterfly

Spialia mafa, the Mafa grizzled skipper or Mafa sandman, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in south-western Africa, in KwaZulu-Natal, Botswana, Zimbabwe and from the Cape in South Africa to Sudan and southern Arabia.

<i>Gegenes niso</i> Species of butterfly

Gegenes niso, the common Hottentot skipper or plain Hottentot skipper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in Africa. It is found in a wide range of habitats, including savanna, grassland and open patches in forests.

<i>Acraea igola</i> Species of butterfly

Acraea igola, the dusky-veined acraea, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found from the Eastern Cape along the coast to KwaZulu-Natal, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, north-eastern Tanzania.

<i>Dixeia pigea</i> Species of butterfly

Dixeia pigea, the ant-heap small white or ant-heap white, is a butterfly in the family Pieridae that is native to Africa.

<i>Eurytela dryope</i> Species of butterfly

Eurytela dryope, the golden piper, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae, found in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Arabian peninsula and Madagascar.

Metisella abdeli, the eastern sylph, is a butterfly in the family Hesperiidae. It is found in Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Eswatini. The habitat consists of forests.

References

  1. Metisella at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
  2. "Afrotropical Butterflies: Hesperiidae - Subfamily Heteropterinae". Archived from the original on 2014-08-19. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
  3. 1 2 3 Woodhall, Steve (2005). Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa. Cape Town, South Africa: Struik. ISBN   978-1-86872-724-7.