Tagiades flesus
{{Short description|Species of butterfly}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Clouded forester
| image =Tagiades_flesus_from_Pipeline_Coastal_Park,_Amanzimtoti,_South_Africa_2.jpg
| image_caption = A male of the summer form
| taxon = Tagiades flesus
| authority = (Fabricius, 1781)[http://www.nic.funet.fi/pub/sci/bio/life/insecta/lepidoptera/ditrysia/hesperioidea/hesperiidae/pyrginae/tagiades/index.html Tagiades] at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
| synonyms =
- Papilio flesus Fabricius, 1781
- Papilio ophion Drury, 1782{{LepIndex |id=188679}} Retrieved April 23, 2018. Savela appears to be wrong in crediting this name to Stoll [1790].
- Tagiades flesus f. ophelia Evans, 1937
}}
Tagiades flesus, the clouded flat, clouded forester or clouded skipper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae found across much of the Afrotropical realm.
File:Tagiades flesus from Pipeline Coastal Park, Amanzimtoti, South Africa.jpg
Description
The wingspan is 35–47 mm for males and 43–49 mm for females. The upper surface of the wings is brownish with translucent spots near the apex of the forewings. These spots are larger in the female than in the male.Williams, M. (1994). Butterflies of Southern Africa; A Field Guide. Southern Book Publishers. {{ISBN|1-86812-516-5}}. The undersurface of the hindwings is white with a semicircle of irregular black spots. The winter form is lighter in colour than the summer form.
Distribution
Life cycle
=Eggs=
=Larvae=
The larvae feed on Dioscorea species (including D. malifolia) and Grewia species. The larva makes a shelter by cutting part way through a leaf from its edge and folding it over, or by sticking two leaves together with silk.
=Pupae=
=Adults=
Adults are on wing year-round; in warmer areas with peaks in late summer and autumn.{{cite book|last=Woodhall |first=Steve |title=Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa |year=2005 |location=Cape Town, South Africa |publisher=Struik |isbn=978-1-86872-724-7 }} The males select territories and fly rapidly, with the white underside of the wings "flashing". The females fly randomly throughout the forest. The adults feed from flowers, including those of Deinbollia oblongifolia and Tabernaemontana ventricosa.Purves, M. (2010) These butterflies usually sit with the wings open.
References
{{Commons}}
{{Wikispecies}}
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Category:Butterflies described in 1781