Dark grass blue

Zizeeria knysna

A small blue butterfly with a wingspan of 18-26 mm, females being often larger. This species resembles the small mauve but has wider black borders. Also called the “African grass blue,” the dark grass lives in many habitats, such as coastal dunes, farmland, riversides, grassland, forest edges, and damp meadows. Host plants include amaranths (Amaranthus spp.), a number of medick species (Medicago spp.), birdsfoot-trefoil (Lotus corniculatus), clovers (Trifolium spp.), fenugreeks (Trigonella spp.), mallows (Malva spp.), goosefoot (Chenopodium spp.), spurges (Euphorbia spp.), sorrels (Oxalis spp.), and knotweeds (Polygonum spp.). This species flies February through October, the flight circling and close to the ground or higher.

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