Red List of South African Species

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Rare
Assessors: Jonathan Ball
Facilitators: Mark Williams
Reviewers: Silvia Kirkman Domitilla Raimondo Rolf Oberprieler

Rationale (Changed due to Same category and criteria)

A taxon endemic to the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces in South Africa but with a large distribution (EOO 138 394 km<sup>2</sup>). Over most of its range the taxon faces no threats. However, close to towns some subpopulations have declined or become extinct over the past 50 years. This localised decline is not likely to have impacted on more than 10 % of the population. This taxon is rarely found in great numbers at any one site, but is found over a large area. The taxon thus qualifies globally under the IUCN criteria as Least Concern and is nationally classified as Rare (Habitat Specialist and Low Density).

Distribution

Endemic to the Eastern Cape and Western Cape provinces of South Africa, from Cape Town in the south-west to Piketberg in the north and Middelton in the east.

Decline

In areas remote from farming activities, the habitats are stable. The small areas of previously relatively undisturbed extant Fynbos near Malmesbury and Piketberg have suffered severe habitat degradation over the last four decades. In other parts of the range there has been incremental decline in the area, extent and quality of habitat, from Coega (E. Cape) to the Winelands of the Western Cape.

Population trend

Trend

There is no information currently available.

Threats

No perceived threats exist in most of the remote colonies. In the Western Cape Province habitat fragmentation of Renosterveld due to housing, farming, plantation forestry and invasive alien vegetation has caused the demise or decline of a number of subpopulations. This has been most noticeable over the past 15 years near Malmesbury and Piketberg.

Conservation

No conservation actions recommended.

References 

[@book{772,
 address = {Johannesburg &Cape Town},
 author = {Mecenero, S., Ball, J.B., Edge, D.A., Hamer, M.L., Henning, G.A., Krüger, M., Pringle, E.L., Terblanche, R.F. & Williams, M.C. (eds)},
 publisher = {Saftronics (pty) Ltd and  Animal Demography Unit, University of Cape Town},
 title = {Conservation assessment of butterflies of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland: Red List and Atlas.},
 year = {2013}
}
,@book{772,
 address = {Pretoria},
 author = {Henning, G.A., Terblanche, R.F. & Ball, J.B. (eds)},
 publisher = {South African National Biodiversity Institute},
 title = {South African Red Data Book: butterflies. SANBI Biodiversity Series},
 year = {2009}
}
,@article{772,
 author = {SANBI},
 journal = {South African National Biodiversity Institute},
 pages = {0},
 title = { Vegetation Map of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland [vector geospatial dataset] 2012. Available from the Biodiversity GIS website.},
 volume = {0},
 year = {2012}
}
,@book{882,
 address = {Cape Town, South Africa},
 author = {Woodhall, S.E.},
 publisher = {Struik},
 title = {Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa.},
 year = {2005}
}
,@book{882,
 address = {Cape Town},
 author = {Pringle, E.L., Henning, G.A. & Ball, J.B. (eds)},
 publisher = {Struik-Winchester},
 title = {Pennington's Butterflies of southern Africa.},
 year = {1994}
}
,@book{890,
 address = {Pretoria},
 author = {Henning, S.F. & Henning, G.A.},
 publisher = {Council for Scientific and Industrial Research},
 title = {South Africa Red Data Book - Butterflies.},
 year = {1989}
}
,@book{893,
 author = {Williams, M.C.},
 publisher = {CD-ROM. Available from the author at mark.williams[at]up.ac.za.},
 title = {Butterflies and skippers of the Afrotropical Region.},
 year = {2016}
}
,@book{10844,
 address = {Halfway House},
 author = {Williams, M.C.},
 publisher = {Southern Book Publishers},
 title = {Butterflies of Southern Africa: A Field Guide.},
 year = {1994}
}
,@article{11536,
 author = {Riley, N.D.},
 journal = {Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society of London},
 pages = {233--245},
 title = {Descriptions of new or little known South African Rhopalocera.},
 volume = {87},
 year = {1938}
}
,@article{11536,
 author = {Cottrell, C.B. },
 journal = {Memoirs of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa},
 pages = {1--110, 3 pls},
 title = {A study of the <i>methymna</i>-group of the genus <i>Lepidochrysops</i> Hedicke (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae).},
 volume = {9},
 year = {1965}
}
,]
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