Memphis leonida

Memphis leonida
as porphyrioa
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Nymphalidae
Tribe:	Anaeini
Genus:	Memphis
Species:	M. leonida
Binomial name
Memphis leonida (Stoll, [1782]) [1]
Synonyms
Papilio leonida Stoll, [1782] Anaea leonida Paphia porphyrio Bates, 1865

Memphis leonida is a species of leafwing found in South America. ^[2]

Subspecies

• Memphis leonida leonida present in Peru, Brazil and Suriname.
• Memphis leonida editha (Comstock, 1961) present in Brazil.

Description

Memphis leonida is a butterfly with forewings with a humped costal edge, pointed apex, concave outer edge near the apex, hook-shaped inner angle, concave inner edge and hind wings each with a club-shaped tail. The upper side of the male's wings is more or less dark purple with a broad basal metallic blue suffusion, the female's is brown with a broad basal metallic blue suffusion.The underside is beige to bright orange and simulates a dead leaf. It is characterized by its peculiar colouring of the upper surface. It is very common in the forests of Peru. ^{[3] [4] [5]}

References

1. Stoll, C. 1780–1790. In Cramer, P. De Uitlandsche Kapellen voorkomende in der drie Waereld-Deelen Asia, Afrika en America (etc). Amsterdam, Baalde & Utrecht. Part 4 + Suppl. Pt.4 [1780]
2. • Savela, Markku (April 7, 2019). "Memphis Hübner, [1819]". Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms. Retrieved July 13, 2025.
3. Comstock, W. P.1961. Butterflies of the American Tropics: the genus Anaea. Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae. New York: Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist. 214pp,30pl.
4. D'Abrera, B. 1988. Butterflies of the Neotropical Region, Nymphalidae, Satyridae. Victoria: Hill House. Pp. 680-723.; present in Mexico, Guatemala, and Panama.
5. Julius Rober ANAEA in Seitz.A. Band 5: Abt. 2, Die exotischen Großschmetterlinge, Die Großschmetterlinge des amerikanischen Faunengebietes, 1907 580 et seq. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .