Catacroptera

Life-forms

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Protostomia
Cladus: Ecdysozoa
Cladus: Panarthropoda
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Hexapoda
Classis: Insecta
Cladus: Dicondylia
Subclassis: Pterygota
Cladus: Metapterygota
Infraclassis: Neoptera
Cladus: Eumetabola
Cladus: Endopterygota
Superordo: Panorpida
Cladus: Amphiesmenoptera
Ordo: Lepidoptera
Subordo: Glossata
Cladus: Coelolepida
Cladus: Myoglossata
Cladus: Neolepidoptera
Infraordo: Heteroneura
Cladus: Eulepidoptera
Cladus: Ditrysia
Cladus: Apoditrysia
Cladus: Obtectomera
Superfamilia: Papilionoidea

Familia: Nymphalidae
Subfamilia: Nymphalinae
Tribus: Kallimini
Genus: Catacroptera
Species: C. cloanthe

Catacroptera is a monotypic butterfly genus of the subfamily Nymphalinae in the family Nymphalidae found in sub-Saharan Africa. The habitat consists of grassland and savanna. Adults are on wing year round, but from September to April in cooler areas.

Description
A pirate in KwaZulu-Natal

The single species, Catacroptera cloanthe, the pirate, has a wingspan of 50 to 63 mm. Its dorsal colour is orange with rows of dark bands in the forewing and blue spots surrounded by darker brown in the hindwing. The underside is brown with greyish stripes. Sexes are similar.[1] There are seasonal forms which differ slightly. The dry-season form has a dark brown underside.
Food plants

The larvae feed on Justicia protracta, Barleria stuhlmanni, Ruellia cordata, Asystasia gangetica, Barleria opaca, Ruellia togoensis, Chaetacanthus setiger, Asclepias and Phaulopsis species.[2]
Subspecies

C. c. subsp. cloanthe – East and southern Africa: Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Swaziland, South Africa (Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, Western Cape)
C. c. subsp. ligata Rothschild & Jordan, 1903 – West Africa: south-eastern Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon

References

Woodhall, Steve (2005). Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa. Cape Town, South Africa: Struik. ISBN 978-1-86872-724-7.
"Afrotropical Butterflies: Nymphalidae - Tribe Kallimini". Archived from the original on 2014-08-19. Retrieved 2012-05-29.