Butterflies of the Indian
subcontinent
Dark Grass Blue
Zizeeria karsandra
MOORE, 1865
Family -
LYCAENIDAE
subfamily -
POLYOMMATINAE
Tribe - POLYOMMATINI
Zizeeria
karsandra
Mumbai, India
© Anand Narkevar
Introduction
The Grass Blues comprise of several
superficially similar genera including Zizeeria,
Zizula, Zizina and
Chilades, all of which
have representatives on the Indian subcontinent. They are all very small
butterflies - the genus Chilades for example
includes the smallest known butterfly species on Earth - the Madagascan Grass
Blue Chilades miniscula, which has a wingspan of
only 9mm.
The Zizeeria
Grass Blues are decidedly larger than Chilades miniscula,
but are nevertheless very tiny butterflies, measuring about 18-20mm from wingtip
to wingtip. There are only 2 species in the genus Zizeeria,
i.e. knysna which is restricted to the Afrotropical
region; and the illustrated species karsandra which
is found in North Africa, s.w. Arabia, across the Indian subcontinent to
Thailand, south through peninsular Malaysia to Sumatra, Borneo, Sulawesi, Java,
Irian Jaya and Australia.
Habitats
As the common name suggests, this species is found in open
grassy habitats. The butterfly is most abundant on the plains,
where it swarms on flowery wasteland, but also commonly occurs on
beach hinterlands, savannah / woodland mosaics, Acacia scrub,
forest glades and clearings, along well-drained riverbanks, and in
parks, gardens and all manner of other grassy places.
Lifecycle
The caterpillars feed on many herbaceous plants amongst which are
Zornia, Melilotus,
Medicago, Trifolium ( Fabaceae ),
Amaranthus ( Amaranthaceae ),
Tribulus ( Zygophyllaceae ) and
Glinus
( Molluginaceae ). They are attended by ants including
Tapinoma melanocephalum, which milk them to obtain a sugary fluid
secreted from their dorsal gland.
Adult behaviour
This is a colony-forming species which occurs in great
abundance in grassy areas, often swarming in dozens or hundreds on lawns and
village football pitches. The butterflies are extremely active, and fly very
close to the ground. They nectar avidly at low-growing herbs including
Tridax, Boerhavia,
Trifolium and Medicago,
showing a distinct preference for white or pink flowers.
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