Papilio aristophontes | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Lepidoptera |
Family: | Papilionidae |
Genus: | Papilio |
Species: | P. aristophontes |
Binomial name | |
Papilio aristophontes | |
Papilio aristophontes is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is endemic to Comoros.
It is listed as a red list species due to its rarity and the threats to its survival. The eggs are laid on the plant Toddalia asiatica , but the caterpillars have been reared on other members of the Rutaceae in captivity.
Male: The upper forewing of the male is black with an iridescent blue bands and five blue spots. The under hindwing is black with an iridescent blue band and a row of blue submarginal spots. The hindwing has a scalloped margin and no tail. The lower forewing is entirely blackish-brown and the lower hindwing is red-brown with black veins. The lower hindwing has a narrow cream submarginal band with silver reflections.
Female: The female is olive-green and brown. The upper forewing and under hindwing are brown with a dull olive green median band and a submarginal band consisting of yellowish-olive lunules. These are continuous over both wings. The lower forewing and the lower hindwing are red-brown with a silvery submarginal band which is continuous over both wings. There is a fawn brown median band on the hindwing with pinkish-grey scales on the outside, and a white abdominal spot.
Papilio aristophontes belongs to an Afrotropical clade called the nireus species-group with 15 members. The pattern is black with green or blue bands and spots and the butterflies, although called swallowtails lack tails with the exception of Papilio charopus and Papilio hornimani. The clade members are:
In some works aristophontes is ranked as a subspecies of Papilio nireus. D'Abrera, following Carcasson, recently reinstated it to full species rank.
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Papilio mechowi is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae found in Africa.
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Papilio cacicus is a Neotropical butterfly of the family Papilionidae first described by Hippolyte Lucas in 1852. It is found in Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador and Peru.
Papilio sosia, the medium green-banded swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found in the Afrotropical realm. The species was first described by Walter Rothschild in 1903.
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Papilio chitondensis is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus Papilio that is found in Angola.
Papilio chrapkowskii, the broad green-banded swallowtail or Chrapkowski's green-banded swallowtail, is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus Papilio that is found in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.
Papilio chrapkowskoides, the broadly green-banded swallowtail, is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus Papilio that is found in the Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Angola.
Papilio hornimani, the Hornimans green-banded swallowtail or Horniman's swallowtail, is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus Papilio that is found in the highland forests of Kenya and Tanzania.
Papilio interjectana, the Van Someren's green-banded swallowtail, is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus Papilio that is found in Uganda and Kenya.
Papilio thuraui is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus Papilio that is found in Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia and the Republic of the Congo.
Papilio ufipa is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus Papilio that is found in Tanzania. The habitat consists of riparian and montane forests at altitudes from 1000 to 2400 meters.
Papilio zenobia, the Zenobia swallowtail or Volta swallowtail, is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus Papilio that is found in Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, the Republic of the Congo and Uganda. It was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1775. The habitat consists of wetter forest in good to reasonable condition.
Papilio microps is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus Papilio that is found in Ethiopia and Somalia.
Papilio wilsoni is a butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is found in Ethiopia.
Mimoides pausanias, the Pausanias swallowtail or bluish mimic-swallowtail, is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae.