Tarsocera cassus

Spring widow
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Nymphalidae
Tribe:	Satyrini
Genus:	Tarsocera
Species:	T. cassus
Binomial name
Tarsocera cassus (Linnaeus, 1764)[1]
Synonyms
Papilio cassus Linnaeus, 1764 Dira cassus (Linnaeus, 1764) Tarsocera cassus cassus ab. polyops Vári, 1971 Tarsocera cassus cassus ab. signata Vári, 1971

Tarsocera cassus (spring widow) is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found in South Africa.

The wingspan is 42–52 mm for males and 50–57 mm for females. Adults are on wing from September to December (with a peak in October or November). There is one generation per year^[2]

The larvae feed on various Poaceae species, including Lolium temulentum and Haparrhenia hirta.

Subspecies

• Tarsocera cassus cassus (northern Cape south to the south-western parts of the West Cape)
• Tarsocera cassus outeniqua Vári, 1971 (Little Karoo and the south-eastern part of the West Cape)

References

1. Tarsocera, Site of Markku Savela
2. Woodhall, S. Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa, Cape Town: Struik Publishers, 2005.