THE BUTTERFLIES OF THE VICTORIA
COUNTRY CLUB ESTATE
Mocker Swallowtail
Barbara Jeppe 1979
Introduction
When wandering about the Estate I so often come across flowers that I know are hidden away and
no resident will ever see them and then a quote from Thomas Gray’s “Elegy in a country churchyard”
comes to mind:
“Full many a flower is born to blush unseen
And waste its sweetness on the desert air”
Nevertheless, those flowers will still be there tomorrow and anyone who is interested enough can go
and see them. Not so with those exquisite jewels, the butterflies, that flit around from tree to tree,
and from flower to flower. They are there one moment and gone the next. They are always on the
move, unlike a flower or even a bird that will at least sit still while you can admire it. Even when
sitting on a flower the wings are opening and closing, or it is so small that details are almost
impossible to see.
One day, just one moment of one day, an exquisite Mother of Pearl butterfly (first picture) sat on my
lawn and the family were able to gather around and wonder at its beauty. No remarkable colours on
its wings, but beautifully scrolled lines and spots perfectly balanced on the extended pearly-white
wings of this large butterfly.
So many of the butterflies are either too rapid of movement or too small to observe clearly and so on
the following pages the jewels of the Estate are illustrated for your enjoyment. There is no scientific
detail, but there is a list of the plants on which their larvae feed.
Photos are from Google Images
Kelson Camp
October 2016
Mother of Pearl. A magnificent, large butterfly that is seldom seen on the Estate
Citrus swallowtail
White-banded swallowtail
Mocker Swallowtail. Male on left and one of the several forms of female on the right.
Forest swallowtail
Green-banded swallowtail
Emperor Swallowtail
South Africa’s largest butterfly
Clouded Yellow
African Monarch – poisonous or toxic butterfly
African migrant
They hatch along the west coast of South Africa and then head in a north-easterly direction, gathering
in vast clouds up to a kilometre in the air. They have to replenish themselves with nectar every 20
minutes or so to avoid dehydration. Often seen as a white cloud when travelling and windscreens
become smeared by collision with the butterflies.
African Leopard
Blue Pansy
Yellow Pansy
Blue-spotted Emperor
White Lady Swallowtail
Painted Lady
Grass Yellow
Battling Glider
Buff-tipped Skipper
Christmas Forester
Common Blue
Common Bush Brown
Common Grass Yellow
Common Hairtail (Ferncliffe Conservancy)
Dotted Blue
Common Fig-tree Blue
Garden Acraea
Lesser Fig-tree Blue
Common Diadem
Gaudy Commodore
Garden Inspector Commodore
Leaf Commodore
Foxy Emperor
Gaika Blue
Geranium Bronze
Gold-spotted Sylph
Golden Piper
King Blue
Latreille’s Skipper
Macomo Ranger
Meadow Blue
Mountain Pride (suggested as National Butterfly)
Mountain Sandman
Natal Barred-blue
Pale Hairtail
Patrician Blue
Pearl-spotted Emperor
Pied Piper
Pirate
Sapphire
Purple-brown Hairstreak
Short-tailed Admiral
Satyr Emperor (female on left and male on right)
Small-spotted Sailor
Striped Policeman
Topaz-spotted Blue (upper and lower side)
Twilight Brown (upper and under wing)
List of Butterfly and the plants their larva feed on.
Butterfly
Plants (Very common***, common* *, rare*, unknown)
Mother of Pearl
Asystasia gangetica***, Isoglossa woodii*.
White-banded Swallowtail
Mocker Swallowtail
Forest Swallowtail
Green-banded Swallowtail
Emperor Swallowtail
Clouded Yellow
African Monarch
African Migrant
Blue pansy
Yellow Pansy
Blue-spotted Emperor
White-Lady Swallowtail
Painted Lady
Grass Yellow
Battling Glider
Buff-tipped Skipper
Christmas Forester
Clausena anisata***, Vepris lanceolata***, Zanthoxylum
capense*, Calodendrum capense**
Teclea natalensis, Vepris lanceolata***
Cryptocarya woodii**, Calodendrum capense**
Calodendrum capense**, Vepris lanceolata***, Clausena
anisata***
Clausena anisata***, Calodendrum capense**Zanthoxylum
capense*
Hypericum aethiopicum*, Acacia spp.**, Chamaecrista
mimosoides*
Asclepias spp.
Cassia spp.
Asystasia gigantica***, Adhatoda natalensis*
Asystasia gigantica***, Ruellia cordata
Albizia adianthifolia***, Chamaecrista mimosoides*
Uvaria caffra
Carduus spp., Arcthotheca calendula, Arctotis stoechadifolia,
Gazania spp*., Berkheya discolor, Malva parvifolia*
Hypericum aethiopicum*, Chamaecrista mimosoides*
Kiggelaria africana**
Grewia occidentalis***, Pavonia burchellii*, Dombeya
cymosa***
Isoglossa woodii* and other spp.
Common Blue
Common Bush Brown
Common Grass Yellow
Common Hairtail
Dotted Blue
Garden Acraea
Common Fig-tree Blue
Lesser Fig-tree Blue
Common Diadem
Gaudy Commodore
Garden Inspector Commodore
Leaf Commodore
Foxy Commodore
Gaika Blue
Geranium Blue
Gold-spotted Sylph
Golden Piper
King Blue
Latreille’s Skipper
Macomo Ranger
Meadow Blue
Mountain Pride
Mountain Sandman
Natal Barred Blue
Pale Hairtale
Patrician Blue
Pearl-spotted Emperor
Pied Piper
Pirate
Purple-brown Hairstreak
Sapphire
Short-tailed Admiral
Satyr Emperor
Small-spotted Sailor
Striped Policeman
Topaz-spotted Blue
Twilight Brown
Indigofera spp**., Plumbago auriculata***
Ehrharta erecta* (grass pioneer species)
Hypericum aethiopicum*, Acacia spp**., Chamaecrista
mimosoides*
Albizia adianthifolia***, Acacia spp. including alien***,
Schotia brachypetala**
Ziziphus mucronata**
Kiggelaria africana**
Ficus sur***, Ficus thongingii**, Ficus spp.***
Ficus sur***, F. thongingii**, Ficus natalensis***
Asystasia gigantica***
Plectranthus fruticosa*
Plectranthus spp.***
Plectranthus spp.***
Schotia brachypetala***
Justicia spp.*, Ruellia spp., Phaulopsis imbricata
Geranium spp.**
Stenotaphrum secundatum***, (lawn grass), Ehrharta
erecta*
Ricinus communis**
Becium obovatum*
Ehrharta erecta
Imperata cylindrica* (grass)
Vigna spp.*
Ehrharta erecta *
Hermannia spp.
Canthium inerme**, Mundulea** spp., Calodendrum
glabrum
Acacia karroo (natalitia)*
Lantana camara*** (category 1 invasive weed)
Hermannia spp.
Dalechampia capensis
Asclepias spp
Calodendrum glabrum
Erianthemum dregei (hairy mistletoe), Ekebergia capensis**
Acalypha glabrata
Acacia ataxacantha, Albizia adianthifolia***
Acalypha glabrata, Ricinus communis (castor oil – invasive
weed)
Philenoptera sutherlandii, Solanum mauritianum***
(Bugweed – invasive weed)
Acacia spp.***
Cynodon spp.*** (grass)
Importance of plant species – number of host plants per butterfly larvae
Host Plants
Frequency on Estate Names & number of Butterflies
Acacia ataxacantha
Satyr Emperor
Acacia karroo (natalitia)
*
Pale Hairtail
Acacia spp.
**
Clouded Yellow
[6 species]
Common Grass Yellow
Common Hairtail
Topaz-spotted Blue
Acalypha glabrata
Short-tailed Admiral
Small-spotted Sailor
Adhatoda natalensis
*
Blue Pansy
Albizia adianthifolia
[3 species]
***
Arcthotheca calendula
Arctotis stoechadifolia
Asclepias spp.
Asystasia gigantica
[4 species]
***
Becium obovatum
Berkheya discolor
Calodendrum capense
[4 species]
*
**
Calodendrum glabrum
Canthium inerme
Carduus spp.
Cassia spp.
Chamaecrista mimosoides
[4 species]
**
Clausena anisata
[3 species]
***
Cryptocarya woodii
Cynodon spp. (grass)
Dalechampia capensis
Dombeya cymosa
Ehrharta erecta (grass)
[4 species]
**
***
Ekebergia capensis
Erianthemum dregei (mistletoe)
Ficus natalensis
Ficus sur
**
Ficus thongingii
**
Ficus spp.
Gazania spp.
Geranium spp.
Grewia occidentalis
Hermannia spp.
***
*
**
***
Hypericum aethiopicum
[3 species]
*
Imperata cylindrica (grass)
Indigofera spp.
*
**
*
***
*
***
***
Blue-spotted Emperor
Common Hairtail
Satyr Emperor
Painted Lady
Painted Lady
African Monarch
Pirate
Mother of Pearl
Blue Pansy
Yellow Pansy
Common Diadem
King Blue
Painted Lady
White-banded Swallowtail
Forest Swallowtail
Green-banded Swallowtail
Emperor Swallowtail
Purple-brown Hairstreak
Natal Barred Blue
Natal Barred Blue
Painted Lady
African Migrant
Clouded Yellow
Blue-spotted Emperor
Grass Yellow
Common Grass Yellow
White-banded Swallowtail
Green-banded Swallowtail
Emperor Swallowtail
Forest Swallowtail
Twilight Brown
Pied Piper
Buff-tipped Skipper
Common Bush Brown
Gold-spotted Sylph
Latreille’s Skipper
Mountain Pride
Sapphire
Sapphire
Lesser Fig-tree Blue
Common Fig-tree Blue
Lesser Fig-tree Blue
Common Fig-tree Blue
Lesser Fig-tree Blue
Common Fig-tree Blue
Painted Lady
Geranium Blue
Buff-tipped Skipper
Mountain Sandman
Pearl-spotted Emperor
Clouded Yellow
Grass Yellow
Common Grass Yellow
Macomo Ranger
Common Blue
Isoglossa woodii
*
Justicia spp.
Kiggelaria africana
*
**
Lantana camara (Category 1 weed)
Malva parvifolia
Mundulea spp.
Pavonia burchellii
Phaulopsis imbricate
Philenoptera sutherlandii
Plectranthus fruticosa
Plectranthus spp.
***
*
**
*
Plumbago auriculata
Ricinus communis (invasive weed)
***
**
Ruellia cordata
Ruellia spp.
Schotia brachypetala
**
*
***
Stenotaphrum secundatum (lawn)
Solanum mauritianum (bugweed)
Teclea natalensis
Uvaria caffra
Vepris lanceolata
[3 species]
***
***
Vigna spp
Zanthoxylum capense
*
*
Ziziphus mucronata
**
***
Mother of Pearl
Christmas Forester
Gaika Blue
Battling Glider
Garden Acraea
Patrician Blue
Painted Lady
Natal Barred Blue
Buff-tipped Skipper
Gaika Blue
Striped Policeman
Gaudy Commodore
Garden Inspector Commodore
Leaf Commodore
Common Blue
Golden Piper
Small-spotted Sailor
Yellow Pansy
Gaika Blue
Common Hairtail
Foxy Commodore
Gold-spotted Sylph
Striped Policeman
Mocker Swallowtail
White-Lady Swallowtail
White-banded Swallowtail
Mocker Swallowtail
Green-banded Swallowtail
Meadow Blue
White-banded Swallowtail
Emperor Swallowtail
Dotted Blue