Iolaus iulus

Iolaus iulus, the Iulus sapphire, is a butterfly in the family Lycaenidae. It is found in Senegal (Basse Casamance), Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, southern Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Zambia.[2] The habitat consists of forests and cleared lands.

Iolaus iulus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Lepidoptera
Family:
Lycaenidae
Genus:
Iolaus
Species:
I. iulus
Binomial name
Iolaus iulus
Synonyms
  • Iolaus (Iolaphilus) iulus
  • Iolaus aelianus Staudinger, 1891
  • Jolaus matilda Suffert, 1904
  • Argiolaus jamesoni entebbeae Riley, 1928

Adults have been recorded feeding from flowers. During the dry season, both sexes mud-puddle.

The larvae feed on the flowers of Loranthus incanus, Globimetula braunii, Globimetula mweroensis, Tapinanthus erianthus and Englerina woodfordioides. They are associated with the ant species Crematogaster buchneri. The larvae are predominantly ruby and green in colour.

References
  1. Iolaus at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
  2. Afrotropical Butterflies: Lycaenidae - Subtribe Iolaina


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