Strelitzia night-fighter
M. fiara as Proteides fiara in Exotische Schmetterlinge
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Lepidoptera
Family:
Hesperiidae
Genus:
Moltena
Species:
M. fiara
Binomial name
Moltena fiara
(Butler, 1870)[1]
Synonyms
  • Proteides fiara Butler, 1870
  • Hesperia natalica Plötz, 1882

Moltena fiara, the strelitzia night-fighter or banana-tree night-fighter, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in coastal lowland and riverine forest from the East Cape along the KwaZulu-Natal coast to Maputaland and north to Maputo in Mozambique.

The wingspan is 54–57 mm for males and 58–64 mm for females. Adults are on wing from August to October and from February to April. There are two generations per year.[2]

The larvae feed on Strelitzia nicolai, first instars are bright red with a black head, and use silk to form a shelter by sticking leaves together.[3]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Moltena fiara.
Wikispecies has information related to Moltena fiara.
  1. ↑ Moltena at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
  2. ↑ Woodhall, Steve (2005). Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa. Cape Town, South Africa: Struik. ISBN 978-1-86872-724-7.
  3. ↑ Images


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