Chrysoritis aethon

Chrysoritis aethon, the Lydenburg opal, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in South Africa, where it is known from northern KwaZulu-Natal to Mpumalanga, along the Drakensberg escarpment to Mariepskop in Limpopo.

Lydenburg opal
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Lycaenidae
Genus:	Chrysoritis
Species:	C. aethon
Binomial name
Chrysoritis aethon (Trimen, 1887)[2]
Synonyms
Zeritis aethon Trimen, 1887 Poecilimitis aethon

The wingspan is 24–28 mm for males and 28–32 mm for females. Adults are on wing from September to April, with peaks in November and February. There are several generations per year.^[3]

The larvae feed on Rhus zeyheri and Diospyros species. They are attended to by Crematogaster liengmei ants.