Introduction
The genus Anthene comprises of about 132 species. It includes the subgenera Neurellipes, Triclema, and Neurypexina although some workers treat these as distinct genera. The genus is centred on the Afrotropical region where there are 123 species. There are also 8 species found in south-east Asia and 1 species which is endemic to Australia.
All Anthene species have three short tails on the hindwing. The uppersides of most species are dark brown, with the males having an indigo or violet sheen. In some species however both sexes have bright metallic orange uppersides with dark brown borders. The undersides are quite variable, e.g. rubricinctus is plain brown with light markings, lachares has a contrasty irregular zebra-like pattern of dark brown and white, larydas is marbled in shades of brown and white, and liodes is white with faint maculae. One characteristic shared by all species however is the group of 2 or 3 tornal spots. These are black, studded with blue scales, and almost enclosed by an orange crescent.
Anthene rubricinctus is distributed from Sierra Leone to Angola and Malawi.
Habitats
This species is found in relatively open woodland habitats including along roadsides and the edges of wide trails.
Lifecycle
The larva has been reared in captivity on Pterocarpus (Fabaceae), but the foodplant used in the wild state is unknown.
Adult behaviour
The adults are usually found in two’s and three’s, often sharing their habitats with larydas, but while males of the latter tend to gather to imbibe moisture from patches of damp ground, rubricinctus are more often seen perching on low foliage or on rocks, where they await passing females.