Kingdom Animalia Class Insecta Family Hesperiidae Scientific name Spialia spio | Phylum Arthropoda Order Lepidoptera Genus Spialia Rank Species | |
Similar Spialia diomus, Gegenes niso, Euchrysops malathana, Anthene amarah, Eicochrysops hippocrates | ||
Spialia spio, the mountain sandman or Spio grizzled skipper, is a butterfly of the Hesperiidae family. It is found in tropical Africa and south-western Arabia. In South Africa it is found all over the eastern side of the country.
The wingspan is 22–29 mm for males and 28–31 mm for females. Adults are on wing year-round in warmer areas. In South Africa it is more common in warmer months. In cooler areas adults are on wing from August to April.
The larvae feed on Lavatera arborea, Hibiscus (including Hibiscus aethiopicus, Hibiscus gossypinus and Hibiscus pusillus), Sida, Pavonia (including Pavonia burchellii, Pavonia macrophylla and Pavonia columella), Triumfetta and Hermannia species (including Hermannia diffusa, Hermannia incana, Hermannia comosa, Hermannia coccocarpa, Hermannia candicans, Hermannia pilosula, Hermannia pallius, Hermannia pollens and Hermannia cuneifolia).