Chrysoritis thysbe

Opal copper
Chrysoritis thysbe
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Lycaenidae
Genus:	Chrysoritis
Species:	C. thysbe
Binomial name
Chrysoritis thysbe (Linnaeus, 1764)
Synonyms
Papilio thysbe Linnaeus, 1764 Papilio nais Cramer, 1775 Papilio splendens Swainson, 1833 Phasis osbecki Aurivillius, 1882 Poecilmitis psyche Pennington, 1967 Poecilmitis bamptoni Dickson, 1976 Poecilmitis lyndseyae Henning, 1979 Poecilmitis thysbe schloszae Dickson, 1994 Poecilmitis whitei Dickson, 1994 Poecilmitis mithras Pringle, 1995

Chrysoritis thysbe, the opal copper or common opal, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in South Africa.

The wingspan 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, C. monilifera, Osteospermum polygaloides, Lebeckia plukenetiana, Aspalathus, Zygophyllum and Thesium species. They are attended to by Crematogaster peringueyi ants.

Subspecies

• Chrysoritis thysbe (nominate subspecies)

Range: Cape Peninsula to Mossel Bay, north to Lamberts Bay, inland to Piketberg and Citrusdal

• Chrysoritis thysbe subsp. osbecki (Aurivillius, 1882)
• Chrysoritis thysbe subsp. psyche (Pennington, 1967)

Range: from Bitterfontein south to Nardouwsberg in the Western Cape

• Chrysoritis thysbe subsp. bamptoni (Dickson, 1976)

Range: Hondeklipbaai area, inland to Wallekraal in the Northern Cape

• Chrysoritis thysbe subsp. schloszae (Dickson, 1994)

Range: Moorreesburg area in the Western Cape

• Chrysoritis thysbe subsp. whitei (Dickson, 1994)

Range: Port Elizabeth area in the Eastern Cape

• Chrysoritis thysbe subsp. mithras (Pringle, 1995)

Range: Stilbaai to Brenton-on-Sea in the Western Cape

• 
  Nominate subsp.
• 
  C. t. subsp. osbecki
• 
  C. t. subsp. psyche
• 
  C. t. subsp. whitei