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Abundance

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Uncommon

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BA Cultnat
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Behaviour

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Flight very rapid, direct and hard to follow, but butterflies reluctant to fly at all

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Bibliotheca Alexandrina
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BA Cultnat
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina

Description

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Size: 29-32 mm.The upperside of the wing is orange with some dark brown marks; the underside of the wing with traverse bands with centres of dull metallic scales. Hard to tell apart from Apharitis myrmecophila

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Bibliotheca Alexandrina
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BA Cultnat
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina

Distribution in Egypt

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Highly localized (Larsen & Pittaway 1982). AOO = 64.5 km2. EOO = 90,000 km2. Possible decline since 1950

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Bibliotheca Alexandrina
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BA Cultnat
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina

Global Distribution

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Narrow (central Sahara to Afghanistan, Pakistan, North West India)

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Bibliotheca Alexandrina
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BA Cultnat
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina

Habitat

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A highly localized desert species, typically in date plantations (Larsen & Pittaway 1982); associated with Crematogaster ants. Adults sit head-down on trunks of mature palms 80-180 cm from the ground. Emerge with considerable fat reserves, and probably feed only occasionally as adults.

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Bibliotheca Alexandrina
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BA Cultnat
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina

IUCN

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Vulnerable (B2 a, b, i, ii, iv)

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BA Cultnat
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BA Cultnat
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina

Life Cycle

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Eggs laid in palm-trunk crevices; larvae carried off by Crematogaster ants, with which they spend their entire life. Adults found on Seriphidium herba-alba and Scariola orientalis (Compositae). One generation per year.

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Bibliotheca Alexandrina
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BA Cultnat
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina

Records

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28 records. Most recent = 2001 (S Sinai)

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Bibliotheca Alexandrina
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BA Cultnat
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina

Status in Egypt

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Resident.

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Bibliotheca Alexandrina
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BA Cultnat
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina

The Flight Period

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April-July

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Bibliotheca Alexandrina
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BA Cultnat
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina