''Leptotes sanctithomae'' 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 ...

in 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 on

São Tomé Island São Tomé Island, at , is the largest island of São Tomé and Príncipe and is home in May 2018 to about 193,380 or 96% of the nation's population. The island is divided into six districts. It is located 2 km (1¼ miles) north of the ...

. The type locality is the settlement of São Nicolau,

Mé-Zóchi District Mé-Zóchi is a district of São Tomé and Príncipe, on São Tomé Island. Its area is . With 44,752 residents (2012) rising to 50,800 in 2018, it is the second most populous district of the country.Emily Mary Bowdler Sharpe Emily Mary Bowdler Sharpe, born on 11 December 1868, was an English entomologist, colourist and illustrator Emily Mary Bowdler Sharpe was the eldest of ten daughters of Richard Bowdler Sharpe (1847–1909) and Emily Eliza Sharpe (née Burrows; ...

in 1893. This species had long remained enigmatic and was assigned to the genus '' Chilades'' until 2011, when it was ruled to be the same species as the one so far called ''Leptotes terrenus'' (Joicey & Talbot, 1926), and was moved to the genus '' Leptotes''.Libert, M. 2011. Note sur le genre ''Leptotes'' Scudder, 1876 (Lepidoptera, Lycaenidae). ''Lambillionea'' 111(1): 53–66.

References

Butterflies described in 1893 Leptotes (butterfly) Invertebrates of São Tomé and Príncipe Endemic fauna of São Tomé Island {{Polyommatini-stub