Hemiolaus caeculus

Updated on Dec 29, 2023

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Kingdom Animalia Class Insecta Family Lycaenidae		Phylum Arthropoda Order Lepidoptera Genus Hemiolaus

Hemiolaus caeculus, the azure hairstreak, is a butterfly of the Lycaenidae family. It is found in southern Africa.

The wingspan is 30–35 mm for males and 34–38 mm for females. Adults are on wing year round with peaks after rains.

The larvae feed on Olax species, including Olax dissitiflora and Olax obtusifolia.

Subspecies

Hemiolaus caeculus caeculus (Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Transvaal, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Malawi, eastern Zambia, south-eastern Tanzania)

Hemiolaus caeculus littoralis Stempffer, 1954 (coast of eastern Kenya and eastern Tanzania, Usambara Mountains)

Hemiolaus caeculus vividus Pinhey, 1962 (western Zambia, south-western Tanzania, southern Zaire (south-eastern Shaba))

Hemiolaus caeculus tsodiloensis (Pinhey, 1969) (northern Botswana)

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