Clutia pulchella, the lightning bush, is a southern African dioecious shrub of the family Peraceae. It occurs at middle altitudes in Namibia, Mozambique,[1] Zimbabwe,[2] Eswatini,[3] Botswana, Lesotho and South Africa.[4]
They may grow 2m-3mm (07feet-10feetm) high,[3] and occur on a variety of broken terrain types.
The twigs are green with some wart-like growths. Leaf shape is somewhat variable, either blunt-tipped ovate or broadly lanceolate. The foliage is bluish-green but sometimes interspersed with some bright orange leaves.[5] They are soft with venation that is transparent against light, besides the numerous glands that dot each leaf.[5] [6]
The axillary flowers develop into spherical,[3] clearly three-chambered capsules. The capsules are about in diameter, and may bear warts. Seeds are released when the dry capsules burst open.
It is a food plant for the Heidelberg copper butterfly. It is similar to the related monoecious species C. abyssinica, which has the leaves more elongated.[4]