Parnara monasi

Parnara monasi
Parnara monasi figure 9
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Hesperiidae
Genus:	Parnara
Species:	P. monasi
Binomial name
Parnara monasi (Trimen, 1889)[1]
Synonyms
Pamphila monasi Trimen, 1889 Parnara anelia Bethune-Baker, 1908 Plastinga podora Plötz, 1884 Pamphila neoba Mabille, 1891 Parnara subochracea Holland, 1896 Parnara chambezi Neave, 1910

Parnara monasi, the water watchman or water skipper, is a butterfly of the Hesperiidae family. It is found in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Senegal, the Gambia, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, South Africa (Limpopo Province, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal) and Swaziland.^[2] The habitat consists of marshes, grassy river-banks and riverine forests in savanna settings.

The wingspan is 30–33 mm for males. Adults are on wing year round but are most common from January to May.

The larvae feed on Saccharum species, Andropogon canaliculatus and Imperata cylindrica.

References

1. Parnara, Site of Markku Savela
2. Afrotropical Butterflies: Hesperiidae - Subfamily Hesperiinae