Lipaphnaeus aderna, the bramble false hairstreak or blue silver speckle, is a butterfly in the family Lycaenidae. It is found in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.[2] The habitat consists of forests and dense savanna.

Lipaphnaeus aderna
Scientific classification
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L. aderna
Binomial name
Lipaphnaeus aderna
(Plötz, 1880)[1]
Synonyms
  • Zeritis aderna Plötz, 1880
  • Zeritis fallax Sharpe, 1890
  • Zeritis latifimbriata Sharpe, 1890
  • Aphnaeus ruficaudis Strand, 1918
  • Spindasis aderna pan Talbot, 1935
  • Aphnaeus spindasoides Aurivillius, 1916

Both sexes have been recorded on flowering shrubs in sunny glades. Adult males mud puddle. Adults are probably on wing year-round, with peaks from August to October and again from March to May.

The larvae feed on Maesa lanceolata. They are associated with ants of the genus Crematogaster.

Subspecies edit

  • Lipaphnaeus aderna aderna (Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon)
  • Lipaphnaeus aderna pan (Talbot, 1935) (Uganda, western Kenya, north-western Tanzania, Democratic Republic of the Congo: Ituri and Kivu)
  • Lipaphnaeus aderna spindasoides (Aurivillius, 1916) (south-eastern Kenya, Malawi, western Mozambique, eastern Zimbabwe, Tanzania: north-east to the Usambara Mountains)

References edit

  1. ^ Lipaphnaeus at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
  2. ^ "Afrotropical Butterflies: Lycaenidae - Subtribe Deudoricina". Archived from the original on 2015-06-20. Retrieved 2012-06-28.

External links edit