''Harpendyreus'' is a genus of
butterflies
Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...
in the family
Lycaenidae
Lycaenidae is the second-largest family (biology), family of butterflies (behind Nymphalidae, brush-footed butterflies), with over 6,000 species worldwide, whose members are also called gossamer-winged butterflies. They constitute about 30% of ...
.
Small butterflies (wingspan 17–24 millimetres) with rounded wings without a tail at the back. The upper parts of the males are bright blue to reddish-violet, often with a small, black spot at the hind corner of the hindwing. The underparts are reddish-brown with slightly darker transverse bands, but without black spots.
The species are found along rivers and streams in high-altitude forests. The larvae feed on various low herbs, including lady's mantle , mints and sage.
The genus is distributed in sub-Saharan Africa, mostly in the eastern and southern parts.
Species
*''
Harpendyreus aequatorialis''
(Sharpe, 1892)
*''
Harpendyreus argenteostriata''
Stempffer, 1961
*''
Harpendyreus berger''
Stempffer, 1976
*''
Harpendyreus boma''
(Bethune-Baker, 1926)
*''
Harpendyreus hazelae''
Stempffer, 1973
*''
Harpendyreus juno''
(Butler, 1897)
*''
Harpendyreus kisaba''
(Joicey & Talbot, 1921)
*''
Harpendyreus major''
(Joicey & Talbot, 1924)
*''
Harpendyreus marlieri''
Stempffer, 1961
*''
Harpendyreus marungensis''
(Joicey & Talbot, 1924)
*''
Harpendyreus meruana''
(Aurivillius, 1910)
*''
Harpendyreus noquasa''
(Trimen & Bowker, 1887)
*''
Harpendyreus notoba''
(Trimen, 1868)
*''
Harpendyreus reginaldi''
Heron, 1909
*''
Harpendyreus tsomo''
(Trimen, 1868)
External links
"''Harpendyreus'' Heron, 1909"at Markku Savela's ''Lepidoptera and some other life forms''
Seitz, A. ''Die Gross-Schmetterlinge der Erde'' 13: Die Afrikanischen Tagfalter. Plate XIII 73
Lycaenidae genera
Taxa named by Francis Arthur Heron
{{Polyommatini-stub