#precis octavia

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Gaudy Commodore | ©Lourens Grobler  (Long Tom Pass, Mpumalanga, South Africa)

Precis octavia (Nymphalidae), the Gaudy commodore, is an African butterfly with two recognized subspecies. The southern subspecies of the gaudy commodore, Precis octavia sesamus, displays a seasonal variation in it’s wing patterning. Individuals emerging as adults in the warm summer appear different to those emerging in the cooler winters of the South African zone. 

What makes the species particularly interesting is the extreme difference between the two seasonal forms displayed. The extreme seasonal variation of the gaudy commodore has not been investigated, and so the process that maintains this variation is a mystery.

The winter form of Precis octavia sesamus (pictured), is slightly larger, and has wings predominantly blue to blue-purple with a line of post-discal orange patches on both wings. Forewing apexes are black with one or two small white spots. The summer form has wings with a vivid red color on both upper and undersides.

GAUDY COMMODORE (Southern subspecies, winter form) Precis octavia sesamus inland of Port Shepstone, KwaZulu-Natal © Purves, M./Michaelwild

The southern subspecies has a summer form (natalensis) which is red with black markings, and a winter form [shown above] (sesamus) which is blue with a line of red markings on the wings. The winter form is slightly larger than the summer form. In both forms the males and females are alike, however the females are slightly larger.

Intermediate forms of the gaudy commodore are rare, but display a wide range of mixtures of the wing patterns of both forms.

Found from the border region of the Eastern and Western Cape in South Africa and along the eastern side of South Africa, to Swaziland, Mozambique, Tanzania and Kenya.

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