Acada biseriata (Mabille, 1893)

The axehead skipper...

The skippers - family Hesperiidae, superfamily Hesperoidea - are one of the three groups that make up the butterflies, and more-or-less intermediate in form between the core butterflies (Papilionoidea) and more 'typical' moths. They're

To anyone living in denial, no, we are not going to treat butterflies as distinct from moths. They're not. But more on that in a later post...

For now:

Eukaryota
  Animalia
    Eumetazoa
      Bilateralia
        Nephrozoa See also Thelotornis capensis, Lygodactylus capensis, Chalcophaps indica and Hipposideros vittatus
          Protostomia
            Ecdysozoa
              Arthropoda See also Dicranopalpus ramosus, Enoplognatha ovata and Ligia oceanica
                Hexapoda
                  Insecta
                    Dicondylia
                      Pterygota
                        Metapterygota See also Pseudagrion hageni
                          Neoptera See also: Stictogryllacris cf. punctata, Cyathosternum prehensile and Sybilla.
                            Eumetabola See also: Anoplocnemis curvipes and Pephricus
                              Endopterygota See also: Hagenomyia tristis, Synagris proserpina, Melolontha melolontha, Otiorhynchus atroapterus, Demetrias atricapillus and Anthia fornasinii
                                Panorpida See also Helophilus pendulus, Episyrphus balteatus, Diasemopsis meigenii, Megistocera filipes and Panorpa germanica
                                  Amphiesmenoptera
                                    Lepidoptera
                                      Glossata
                                        Neolepidoptera
                                          Heteroneura
                                            Ditrysia See also Zebronia phenice
                                              Cossina
                                                Bombycina See also Laelia robusta
                                                  Rhopacera See also Anthocharis cardamines
                                                    Hesperioidea
                                                      Hesperiidae
                                                        Hesperiinae
                                                          Erionotini

Acada biseriata 

(Mabille, 1893)

 Photographed in Chongwe, Lusaka, Zambia, in February 2013.

Like most skippers, Acada biseriata is small - around about the size of the average man's thumbnail - and easily overlooked among the plethora of butterflies. It's underside, although often a pleasing shade, is also rather unremarkable:

In the hundreds of small butterflies - and no exaggeration - that can be found in the rural areas of subsaharan Africa, this pattern of pale brown markings sets the handful of Acada species apart from most of their neighbours. They are further set apart by the upperwing patterns:

Although all these pictures are taken within Chongwe District, Zambia, this species is widespread - from Kenya to north-eastern provinces of South Africa. In Zambia, it seems to be present in all seasons, but is far more abundant during the mid-to-late rains.

That's all, folks.

Although this species not originally identified through this site, the R. C. Dening Collection is a valuable - if somewhat outdated and a little grim - tool for identifying Zambian butterflies. Care must be taken, however, as although the collection is vast, the diversity of Zambian butterflies, particularly in the Lycaenidae and Hesperiidae, is much vaster.