Charaxes smaragdalis

Charaxes smaragdalis
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Nymphalidae
Subfamily:	Charaxinae
Tribe:	Charaxini
Genus:	Charaxes
Species:	C. smaragdalis
Binomial name
Charaxes smaragdalis Butler, [1866] [1]
Synonyms
Charaxes smaragdalis f. schoutedeniGhesquière, 1933 Charaxes princepsButler, 1896 Charaxes smaragdalis orientalisJoicey & Talbot, 1918 (preocc. Lanz, 1896) Charaxes smaragdalis smaragdalis f. benivan Someren, 1964 Charaxes smaragdalis leopoldi f. pseudobohemaniPlantrou, 1979 Charaxes smaragdalis f. caeruleaCarpenter and Jackson, 1950

Charaxes smaragdalis, the western blue charaxes, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found from Senegal to Somalia, from Angola to Kenya and from Sudan to Egypt.

The butterfly's wingspan is 85 to 100 mm. Adults are black with white and blue bands and spots. The hindwings each have two little tails. ^[2]

Figure 5

Description

For a key to the terms used, see Glossary of entomology terms.

Ch. smaragdalis Btlr. Both wings above from the base to the apex of the cell black with greenish or bluish reflection, then follows in the male a blue half-band, about 10 mm. in breadth, between the hindmargin and vein 2 or 3 and in each cellule from 3—7 two very widely separated spots, all blue except the distal ones in cellules 6 and 7; in the female there is in the middle a white transverse band, 7 mm. in breadth, running obliquely from the costal margin towards the hinder angle and reaching vein 1; the outer row of spots, which runs almost parallel with the distal margin in the male, is almost identical in the female. The hindwing has behind the apex of the cell a blue transverse band 12 (male)—15 (female) mm. in breadth and is black at the distal margin with blue-white submarginal spots and marginal line. The under surface is dark grey-brown, marked almost as in bohemanni . Niger to Angola and Uganda. — The blue transverse band on the upperside of the hindwing is narrower and everywhere completely separated from the blue marginal line. Sierra Leone to the Gold Coast. ^[3] See External links for the original description by Arthur Gardiner Butler published in 1866 in The Proceedings of the Scientific Meetings of the Zoological Society of London.

Habitat in Gabon (Franceville)

Biology

Its habitat is (lowland rainforest in the west, gallery forest in the south, and patches of lowland and montane forest in the east). ^{[4] [5]}

Taxonomy

Charaxes tiridates group.

The supposed clade members are:

• Charaxes tiridates
• Charaxes numenes - similar to next
• Charaxes bipunctatus - similar to last
• Charaxes violetta
• Charaxes fuscus
• Charaxes mixtus
• Charaxes bubastis
• Charaxes albimaculatus
• Charaxes barnsi
• Charaxes bohemani
• Charaxes schoutedeni
• Charaxes monteiri
• Charaxes smaragdalis
• Charaxes xiphares
• Charaxes cithaeron
• Charaxes nandina
• Charaxes imperialis
• Charaxes ameliae
• Charaxes pythodoris
• ? Charaxes overlaeti

For a full list see Eric Vingerhoedt, 2013. ^[6]

Subspecies

• C. s. smaragdalis (Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Central African Republic, Congo, Zaire) ^[7]
• C. s. butleriRothschild, 1900 ^[8] (Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Liberia) ^[9]
• C. s. caeruleaCarpenter & Jackson, 1950 ^{[10] [11]} (eastern Zaire, south-western Uganda) ^[12]
• C. s. elgonaevan Someren, 1964 ^[13] (Uganda) ^[12]
• C. s. gobyaePlantrou, 1988C. s. gobyae Plantrou, 1988 ^[14] (south-eastern Sudan) ^[12]
• C. s. homonymusBryk, F. 1939 ^[15] (south-west Kenya , north Tanzania)
• C. s. kageravan Someren, 1964 (north-western Tanzania, south-western Uganda) ^[12]
• C. s. kigomavan Someren, 1964 (Tanzania) ^[12]
• C. s. leopoldiGhesquière, 1933 ^[16] (northern Angola, eastern Congo, south-western Zaire) ^[12]
• C. s. metuvan Someren, 1964 (south-western Sudan, northern Uganda) ^[12]
• C. s. torovan Someren, 1964 (western Uganda) ^[12]
• C. s. allardiBouyer & Vingerhoedt, 1997 ^{[17] [12]}

References

1. Butler, A.G. 1866. Monograph of the species of Charaxes, a genus of diurnal Lepidoptera. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1865: 622-639.
2. "ButterflyCorner.net: Charaxes smaragdalis (Western Blue Charaxes)". en.butterflycorner.net. Retrieved 2017-07-27.
3. Aurivillius, [P.O.]C. 1908-1924. In: Seitz, A. Die Großschmetterlinge der Erde Band 13: Abt. 2, Die exotischen Großschmetterlinge, Die afrikanischen Tagfalter, 1925, 613 Seiten, 80 Tafeln (The Macrolepidoptera of the World 13).Alfred Kernen Verlag, Stuttgart. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
4. Henning, S.F. 1988 [1989]. The Charaxinae butterflies of Africa. Aloe Books, Johannesburg, 1-457
5. Frankenbach, B. Turlin; [editors:] Erich Bauer, Thomas (2007). Butterflies of the World. Goecke & Evers. p. iv. ISBN   9783937783321.{{cite book}}: |first= has generic name (help)
6. "African Charaxes/Charaxes Africains Eric Vingerhoedt, 2013". Archived from the original on 2013-06-27.
7. "Charaxes smaragdalis smaragdalis". African Butterfly Database. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
8. Rothschild, W. 1900 in Rothschild, W., & Jordan, K. 1900. A monograph of Charaxes and the allied prionopterous genera. Novitates Zoologicae 7: [i-iv], 287-524.
9. "Charaxes smaragdalis butleri". African Butterfly Database. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
10. Carpenter, G.D.H., and Jackson, T.H.E. 1950. New butterflies from East Africa and the Ituri Forest. Proceedings of the Royal Entomological Society of London (B) 19: 97-108.
11. Jackson, T.H.E. 1951. Notes on some new or rare Rhopalocera from eastern Africa. Revisional notes and descriptions of some new East African Rhopalocera. Proceedings of the Royal Entomological Society of London (B) 20: 91-105.
12. "African Butterfly Database". African Butterfly Database. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
13. van Someren, V.G.L. 1964. Revisional notes on African Charaxes (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae). Part II. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) (Entomology) 15:181-235.
14. Plantrou, J. 1989. In: Henning, 1989. The Charaxinae butterflies of Africa 165 (457 pp.). Johannesburg.
15. Bryk, F. 1939 in Stichel, 1939. In: Bryk, F., Lepidopterorum Catalogus 30 (91): s’Gravenhage 444 (375-542.
16. Ghesquière, J. 1933. Variations et aberrations de Lepidopteres (suite). Sur deux races nouvelles de Charaxes smaragdalis Btlr. (Nymph.). Lambillionea 33: 3-6.
17. Bouyer & Vingerhoedt, E. 1997. Description d’une nouvelle sous-espece de Charaxes smaragdalis Butler, 1865 (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae). Entomologia Africana 2 (2): 32-33, 36-39.

• Seitz, A. Die Gross-Schmetterlinge der Erde 13: Die Afrikanischen Tagfalter. Plate XIII 31
• Victor Gurney Logan Van Someren, 1964 Revisional notes on African Charaxes (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae). Part II. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) (Entomology)181-235.
• Van Someren, 1969 Revisional notes on African Charaxes (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae). Part V. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) (Entomology)75-166. Additional notes

External links

• Original description
• Images of C. s. allardi Royal Museum for Central Africa (Albertine Rift Project)
• Images of C. s. caerulea (Albertine Rift Project)
• Images of C. s. kagera (Albertine Rift Project)
• Images of C. s. kigoma (Albertine Rift Project)
• Images of C. s. leopoldi (Albertine Rift Project)
• Images of C. s. smaragdalis (Albertine Rift Project)
• "Charaxes Ochsenheimer, 1816" at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
• Charaxes smaragdalis images at Bold
• C. s. allardi images at BOLD
• C. s. butleri images at BOLD
• C. s. caerulea images at BOLD includes verso
• C. s. elgonae images at BOLD
• C. s. homonymus images at BOLD