Charaxes andara

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Charaxes andara
Nymphalid Butterfly (Charaxes andara) (8350753232).jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Nymphalidae
Genus: Charaxes
Species:
C. andara
Binomial name
Charaxes andara
Ward, 1873 [1]

Charaxes andara is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found in eastern and southern Madagascar, [2] where it is found in Afrotropical forests. It is very similar to Charaxes brutus , of which it has been considered a subspecies.

Contents

Description

Male

Edges of abdominal segments above sometimes slightly grey. Wings above with a violet tint; band conspicuously edged with pale blue from M2 of forewing to (SM1) of the hindwing. Forewing; band 6 to 8 mm broad before SM2 (inclusive of blue border), patch M1-M2 3 to 4 mm wide, spot R2-R3 generally elongate, narrow, sometimes prolonged to bar D, but its proximal portion then shaded with brown, spot R1-R2 often also elongate, spots SC4-R1 mostly bluish, small, often only vestigial; marginal spots white as a rule, often slightly orange proximally, in one specimen (in Henley Grose-Smith's collection) all orange and rather larger than usually. Hindwing: two submarginal dots M2-SM2, blue; admarginal bluish-creamy white line seldom continuous, mostly very widely interrupted between veins, there remaining only triangular spots at the ends of the veins, these spots extending into tails, anal admarginal spot, however, linear and transverse, bluish olive; discal band stopping at (SM1).

Underside rufous red from base to discal band, bars without grey centres. Forewing: cell-bar 3 somewhat rounded, 4 rather slender, as is bar D; median bars SC3-R2 also slender, bars SC3-R2 each very much longer than broad (a part of white border) discal bars SC4-R1 dark olive; outer area of wing from white band to margin tawny ochraceous; black postdiscal patches R1-M! rather smaller than in the continental forms, less pointed. Hindwing: basal costal bar not touching white costal edge, often rounded, almost circular, white band posteriorly as well as anteriorly with brown spots or vestiges of such; interspace between white discal band and black postdiscal bars cinnamon rufous, as a rule darker than basal area; postdiscal bars C-M2 transverse, not or slightly curved, rather thin, not dilated in middle, edged olive distally; submarginal interspace chestnut, seldom rufous chestnut, much wider than in the other forms, bar R1-R2 5 mm distant from submarginal bar, much shaded with white distally, interspaces M1-SM2 olive, with blue and white submarginal dots; submarginal bars blackish olive, transverse, linear; wing more heavily dentate than in the continental forms of C. brutus, tail R3 7 to 8 mm long, tail M1 3 to 5 mm, tail M2 6+12 to 7+12 mm.

Female

Wings above less bluish than in male. Forewing: costal margin more or less tawny; band pale orange, white from M2 backwards, posteriorly edged with pale blue at both sides, but especially proximally, 10 mm broad at SM2, patch R3-M1 7 mm long, oblique proximally, patch R2-R3 extended to bar D, patch R1-R2 about twice as long as broad, with two discal spots in front, besides the two rounded postdiscal spots SC1-R1, discal spot SC5-R1 rather larger, produced distad along R1 and mostly joined to the postdiscal spot, discal spot SC4=SC5 linear, an orange streak also in front of SC4; marginal spots pale orange. Hindwing: band broadly bordered with bluish white proximally, basal half of abdominal fold also milky white, pale blue distal border of band gradually narrowing costad; blue submarginal dots M2-SM2 heavy, fused together as a rule, dot M1-M2 often present; admarginal line orange between, creamy buff or bluish at veins, nearly continuous, or interrupted at the veins, often obsolete from C to R1, anal portion as in male but wider.

Underside: as in male, but submarginal area of hindwing more olive and white, the chestnut scaling very much reduced, sometimes almost entirely replaced by olive and white; tails and teeth as in male, rather broader at base and longer.

Length of forewing: male 34–41 mm, female 42–46 mm.

Habitat: Madagascar, apparently all over the island in suitable localities; a forest insect.

Historical attempts to assemble a cluster of presumably related species into a "Charaxes jasius Group" have not been wholly convincing. More recent taxonomic revision, [3] corroborated by phylogenetic research, allow a more rational grouping congruent with cladistic relationships. Within a well-populated clade of 27 related species sharing a common ancestor approximately 16 mya during the Miocene, [4] 26 are now considered together as The jasius Group. [3] One of the two lineages within this clade forms a robust monophyletic group of seven species sharing a common ancestor approximately 2-3 mya, i.e. during the Pliocene, [4] and are considered as the jasius subgroup. [3] The second lineage leads to 19 other species within the Jasius group, which are split into three well-populated subgroups of closely related species.

The jasius Group (26 Species). [3]

Clade 1: the jasius subgroup.

Clade 2: contains the three well-populated additional subgroups (19 species) of the jasius Group, called the brutus, pollux, and eudoxus subgroups. [3]

Further exploration of the phylogenetic relationships amongst existing Charaxes taxa is required to improve clarity.

Related Research Articles

<i>Charaxes jasius</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes jasius, the two-tailed pasha, is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is the only European species of the genus Charaxes. Divergence of the Mediterranean species C. jasius from the last common ancestor with its closest related species still flying in the Afrotropical realm most probably occurred around 2 mya, i.e. during the Pliocene.

<i>Charaxes brutus</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes brutus, the white-barred emperor or white-barred Charaxes, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found in Africa.

<i>Charaxes pelias</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes pelias, the protea emperor or protea charaxes, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae, and is endemic to the Cape Provinces in South Africa.

<i>Charaxes druceanus</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes druceanus, the silver-barred emperor or silver-barred charaxes, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found throughout tropical Africa.

<i>Charaxes guderiana</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes guderiana, the blue-spangled emperor, Guderian's charaxes or blue-spangled charaxes, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found in southern Africa.

<i>Charaxes ansorgei</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes ansorgei is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi and Zambia. The habitat consists of montane forest on altitudes between 2,000 and 3,000 meters. The larvae feed on Bersama abyssinica abyssinica, Bersama abyssinica englerana and Bersama paullinoides.It was once considered to be a very rare species but it is relatively common in dense and inaccessible montane forests

<i>Charaxes pollux</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes pollux, the black-bordered charaxes, is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae.

<i>Charaxes etheocles</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes etheocles, the demon charaxes, is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found in Senegal, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, the Central African Republic, the Republic of the Congo, Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia.

<i>Charaxes doubledayi</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes doubledayi, Doubleday's untailed charaxes, is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found in Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, Bioko, the Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and western Tanzania. The habitat consists of lowland tropical evergreen forests. It is a very rare butterfly

<i>Charaxes latona</i> Species of Emperor butterfly

Charaxes latona, the orange emperor, is a butterfly of the rajahs and nawabs group, i.e. the Charaxinae group of the brush-footed butterflies family. It is native to the tropical rainforests of eastern Indonesia, western Melanesia and far northern Queensland, Australia, where it is limited to the Iron Range.

<i>Charaxes mars</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes mars, the iron rajah, is a butterfly of the rajahs and nawabs group, i.e. the Charaxinae group of the brush-footed butterflies family. It is endemic to Sulawesi in central Indonesia. Charaxes mars is a large butterfly with forewings with concave outer edge and hindwings each with a tail. The upper side of the forewings is dark blue and light in the basal part. The hindwings are orange with a submarginal line of dark brown ocelli.

<i>Charaxes distanti</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes distanti is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It was described by Eduard Honrath in 1885. It is found in the Indomalayan realm.

<i>Charaxes borneensis</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes borneensis,the White Banded Rajah, is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It was described by Arthur Gardiner Butler in 1869. It is found in the Indomalayan realm.

<i>Charaxes nitebis</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes nitebis, the green rajah, is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It was described by William Chapman Hewitson in 1859. It is found in the Indomalayan realm.

<i>Charaxes affinis</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes affinis is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It was described by Arthur Gardiner Butler in 1866. It is found in the Indomalayan realm.

<i>Charaxes antonius</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes antonius is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It was described by Georg Semper in 1878. It is endemic to Mindanao (Philippines) in the Indomalayan realm.

<i>Charaxes bupalus</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes bupalus is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It was described by Otto Staudinger in 1889. It is endemic to Palawan in the Indomalayan realm.

<i>Charaxes fervens</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes fervens is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It was described by Arthur Gardiner Butler in 1896. It is endemic to Nias in the Indomalayan realm.

<i>Charaxes ocellatus</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes ocellatus is a butterfly belonging to the family Nymphalidae. It was first described by Hans Fruhstorfer in 1896. This species is endemic to the Lesser Sunda Islands in the Australasian realm, near the Wallace line.

<i>Charaxes epijasius</i> Species of butterfly

Charaxes epijasius, the cream-bordered charaxes or Sahel charaxes, is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It flies through most of the Savannah of the Afrotropical realm except southern Africa.

References

  1. "Charaxes Ochsenheimer, 1816" at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
  2. "Afrotropical Butterflies: File H - Charaxinae - Tribe Charaxini". Archived from the original on 2013-11-09. Retrieved 2012-05-22.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Turlin, B. (2005). Bauer & Frankenbach (ed.). Butterflies of the World: Charaxes 1. Vol. 22. Keltern: Goecke & Evers. pp. 2–3. ISBN   3937783156.
  4. 1 2 "Out of Africa again: A phylogenetic hypothesis of the genus Charaxes (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) based on five gene regions" Archived 2019-07-25 at the Wayback Machine . Aduse-Poku, Vingerhoedt, Wahlberg. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution (2009) 53;463–478