Godeffroy's swallowtail | |
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Papilio godeffroyi in Adalbert Seitz's The Macrolepidoptera of the World | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Lepidoptera |
Family: | Papilionidae |
Genus: | Papilio |
Species: | P. godeffroyi |
Binomial name | |
Papilio godeffroyi Semper, 1866 | |
Papilio godeffroyi, the Godeffroy's swallowtail, (Samoan pepe ae) is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae.
Papilio godeffroyi was endemic to all of Samoa, but it is now found only on the island of Tutuila, where it is uncommon but widespread and restricted to undisturbed or near-undisturbed rainforest. It was last seen in Samoa in 1979. [1] This is only around 5% of its original range, and the species has recently been submitted to the IUCN Red List as critically endangered.
The larva feeds on Micromelum minutum (Rutaceae), locally called talafalu.
The species, named to honour Johann Cesar VI. Godeffroy, is illustrated on a Samoan postage stamp issued on 14 December 2001.
In July 2023 the Samoa Conservation Society announced plans to reintroduce the butterfly to Samoa. [1]
German Samoa was a German protectorate from 1900 to 1920, consisting of the islands of Upolu, Savai'i, Apolima and Manono, now wholly within the Independent State of Samoa, formerly Western Samoa. Samoa was the last German colonial acquisition in the Pacific basin, received following the Tripartite Convention signed at Washington on 2 December 1899 with ratifications exchanged on 16 February 1900. It was the only German colony in the Pacific, aside from the Jiaozhou Bay Leased Territory in China, that was administered separately from German New Guinea.
Papilio is a genus in the swallowtail butterfly family, Papilionidae, as well as the only representative of the tribe Papilionini. The word papilio is Latin for butterfly.
Swallowtail butterflies are large, colorful butterflies in the family Papilionidae, and include over 550 species. Though the majority are tropical, members of the family inhabit every continent except Antarctica. The family includes the largest butterflies in the world, the birdwing butterflies of the genus Ornithoptera.
Tutuila is the main island of American Samoa, and is part of the archipelago of Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific. It is located roughly 4,000 kilometers (2,500 mi) northeast of Brisbane, Australia and lies over 1,200 kilometers (750 mi) to the northeast of Fiji. It contains a large, natural harbor, Pago Pago Harbor, where Pago Pago, the capital of American Samoa, is situated. Pago Pago International Airport is also located on Tutuila. The island’s land expanse is about 68% of the total land area of American Samoa. With 56,000 inhabitants, it is also home to 95% of the population of American Samoa. The island has six terrestrial and three marine ecosystems.
Papilio machaon, the Old World swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. The butterfly is also known as the common yellow swallowtail or simply the swallowtail. It is the type species of the genus Papilio. This widespread species is found in much of the Palearctic and in North America.
Papilio polytes, the common Mormon, is a common species of swallowtail butterfly widely distributed across Asia.
John Stanislaw Kubary also stated as Jan Stanisław Kubary, Jan Kubary, or Johann Stanislaus Kubary, was a Polish naturalist and ethnographer.
Papilio aegeus, the orchard swallowtail butterfly or large citrus butterfly is a species of butterfly from the family Papilionidae, that is found in eastern Australia and Papua New Guinea.
Papilio ulysses, the Ulysses butterfly, is a large swallowtail butterfly of Australia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. Its size varies depending on subspecies, but the wingspan is about 10.5 cm (4.1 in) in Queensland.
Papilio chikae, the Luzon peacock swallowtail, is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is endemic to the Philippines. It has two subspecies, with P. c. chikae from Luzon and P. c. hermeli(Nuyda, 1992) from Mindoro. The latter was originally described as a separate species, but it resembles the nominate subspecies and there are no significant differences in their genitalia, leading recent authorities to treat them as subspecies of a single species.
Papilio weymeri is a species of swallowtail butterfly in the Papilioninae subfamily that is endemic to Papua New Guinea where it is found on Los Negros and Manus Islands.
The Museum Godeffroy was a museum in Hamburg, Germany, which existed from 1861 to 1885.
Andrew Garrett (1823–1887), was an American explorer, naturalist and illustrator. He specialized in malacology and ichthyology.
Papilio aristodemus, the Schaus' swallowtail or island swallowtail, is a species of American butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is found in southern Florida in the United States and throughout the West Indies. It is named in honor of William Schaus.
Johann Cesar Godeffroy was a German trader, blackbirder and Hanseat.
Siphonogorgia godeffroyi, the cherry blossom coral or Godeffroy's Soft Coral, is a species of soft coral in the family Nidaliidae. It is native to the central Indo-Pacific region. Its range includes Indonesia, the Philippines and Papua New Guinea. This species was first described in 1874 by the Swiss biologist Albert von Kölliker.
The Samoa Conservation Society is an environmental organisation based in Samoa. Its purpose is to promote the conservation of Samoa’s biological diversity and natural heritage. The society is active in efforts to save the critically-endangered Manumea, Samoa's national bird, and in forest restoration.
Papilio natewa, commonly known as the Natewa swallowtail, is a species of swallowtail butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is endemic to the Natewa Peninsula of Vanua Levu, Fiji. Described in 2018 by John Tennent, Visheshni Chandra, and Chris J. Müller, it was identified from photographs sent to researchers by ornithologist Greg Kerr. Its discovery was remarkable due to how little-known the butterfly had been prior to its discovery, despite its showy appearance. It is one of three native swallowtails found in the region.