''Chrysoritis thysbe'', the opal copper or common opal, is a

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

of the family

Lycaenidae Lycaenidae is the second-largest 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 the known butterfl ...

. It is found in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan of ...

is 24–32 mm for males and 23–35 mm for females. Adults are on wing year-round with peaks in October and March. The larvae feed on ''

Chrysanthemoides incana ''Chrysanthemoides'' is one of eight genera of the Calenduleae, with a centre of diversity in South Africa. The genus contains only two species, but is known for the invasive "Bitou Bush" '' Chrysanthemoides monilifera''. Studies of this genus h ...

'', '' C. monilifera'', '' Osteospermum polygaloides'', ''

Lebeckia plukenetiana ''Lebeckia plukenetiana'' is a species of flowering plant in the genus ''Lebeckia''. It is endemic to the Western Cape of South Africa. Distribution ''Lebeckia plukenetiana'' was once found in the Swartland and upper Breede River Valley; ± 75 ...

'', ''

Aspalathus ''Aspalathus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. The yellow flowers and spiny habit of some species have suggested a resemblance to ''Ulex europaeus'', the thorny " English gorse" Accordingly, "Cape Gorse" has been proposed ...

'', ''

Zygophyllum ''Zygophyllum'' is the type genus of the flowering plant family Zygophyllaceae. The generic name is derived from the Greek words ζυγόν (''zygon''), meaning "double", and φυλλον (''phyllon''), meaning "leaf". It refers to the leaves, ...

'' and ''

Thesium ''Thesium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Santalaceae. It is particularly well represented in South Africa. The following species are recognised by ''The Plant List'': *'' Thesium acuminatum'' A.W. Hill *'' Thesium acutissimum'' ...

'' species. They are attended to by ''

Crematogaster peringueyi ''Crematogaster peringueyi'' is a southern African arboreal species of ant. They are commonly known as the black cocktail ant or swartwipgatmier (Afrikaans) for their colour and habit of arching their abdomens when alarmed. Habits They make t ...

'' ants.

Subspecies

*''Chrysoritis thysbe'' (nominate subspecies) ::Range:

Cape Peninsula The Cape Peninsula ( af, Kaapse Skiereiland) is a generally mountainous peninsula that juts out into the Atlantic Ocean at the south-western extremity of the African continent. At the southern end of the peninsula are Cape Point and the Cape of ...

Mossel Bay Mossel Bay ( af, Mosselbaai) is a harbour town of about 99,000 people on the Southern Cape (or Garden Route) of South Africa. It is an important tourism and farming region of the Western Cape Province. Mossel Bay lies 400 kilometres east of the ...

, north to

Lamberts Bay Lambert's Bay is a small fishing town in the Western Cape province of South Africa situated north of Cape Town. It is part of the Cederberg Municipality. The coast town has been proclaimed 'the Diamond of the West Coast' because of its white bea ...

, inland to

Piketberg Piketberg (also sometimes spelt Piquetberg in the past) is a town in the Western Cape, South Africa, located about 80 km east of Saldanha Bay. The original spelling of the name was "Piquetberg". The town is in the foothills of the Piketberg mounta ...

and

Citrusdal Citrusdal is a town of 5,000 people in the Olifants River Valley in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is situated at the base of the Cederberg mountains about north of Cape Town. Agriculture in the area is dominated by citrus fruit fa ...

*''Chrysoritis thysbe'' subsp. ''osbecki'' (Aurivillius, 1882) *''Chrysoritis thysbe'' subsp. ''psyche'' (Pennington, 1967) ::Range: from

Bitterfontein Bitterfontein is a village in the Knersvlakte, the northernmost area of the Western Cape province of South Africa, north of Cape Town. It is the railhead of a line from Cape Town; ore from the copper mines at Okiep is transferred there from road t ...

south to Nardouwsberg in the Western Cape *'' Chrysoritis thysbe'' subsp. ''bamptoni'' (Dickson, 1976) ::Range:

Hondeklipbaai Hondeklip Bay ( af, Hondeklipbaai, which translates as ''dog stone bay'') is a coastal village in the Namakwa district of the Northern Cape province of South Africa. It lies about 95 km south west of the district capital Springbok. This vi ...

area, inland to Wallekraal in the Northern Cape *''Chrysoritis thysbe'' subsp. ''schloszae'' (Dickson, 1994) ::Range:

Moorreesburg Moorreesburg is a rural town situated about north of Cape Town, in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It was laid out in 1879 on the farm Hooikraal, was administered by a village management board from 1882 and attained municipal status in ...

area in the Western Cape *''Chrysoritis thysbe'' subsp. ''whitei'' (Dickson, 1994) ::Range:

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...

area in the Eastern Cape *''Chrysoritis thysbe'' subsp. ''mithras'' (Pringle, 1995) ::Range: Stilbaai to

Brenton-on-Sea Brenton-on-Sea is a settlement and seaside resort town 15km west of Knysna in Garden Route District Municipality in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Named after Sir Jahleel Brenton, 1st Baronet, Sir Jahleel Brenton, who declared Knysna a ...

in the Western Cape File:Chrysoritis thysbe thysbe, stel.jpg, File:Chrysoritis thysbe osbecki, stel.jpg, File:Chrysoritis thysbe psyche, stel.jpg, File:Chrysoritis thysbe whitei, stel.jpg,

References

Butterflies described in 1764 Chrysoritis Endemic butterflies of South Africa Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Aphnaeini-stub