| Green-banded swallowtail | |
|---|---|
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| both P. n. lyaeus Semliki Wildlife Reserve' Uganda | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Papilionidae |
| Genus: | Papilio |
| Species: | P. nireus |
| Binomial name | |
| Papilio nireus | |
| Synonyms | |
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Papilio nireus, the green-banded swallowtail, narrow-banded blue swallowtail, or African blue-banded swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The wingspan is 75–90 millimetres (3.0–3.5 in) in males and 85–95 mm (3.3–3.7 in) in females. Forewing above at most with two blue submarginal spots in cellules 7 and 8; rarely in the female with several yellow ones; the blue (male) or greenish (female) median band is 2–7 mm broad at the hindmargin of the forewing and 4–12 mm in the middle of the hindwing, and is only a little widened posteriorly; the spot in cellule 2 of the hindwing does not completely cover the base of the cellule and the narrow spot in cellule lc does not reach the cell; forewing beneath almost always entirely without submarginal spots. [Nominate] Median band of the forewing above well developed, the spots of cellules 2—4 obliquely cut off distally; the discal spot in cellule 2 of the hindwing is very long and produced farther towards the anal angle than the spot in cellule 1 c. Sierra Leone to Angola and Uganda. — lyaeus Dbl. The median band narrower, but complete; the spot in cellule 2 of the hindwing is shorter and does not reach so far towards the anal angle as the one in 1 c. Larva above green, beneath whitish, with a whitish oblique longitudinal streak at each side on segments 7 and 8 and a girdle of ring-shaped spots on the third segment. Cape Colony to Angola and British East Africa. male ab. aelyus Suff. only differs from lyaeus in the discal spot in cellule 1 a of the forewing being entirely wanting and the one in cellule 1 b divided into two; German East Africa.— pseudonireus Fldr. (= donaldsoni Em. Sharpe). The median band is altogether absent on the forewing or is only represented by a few very small spots; on the hindwing it is formed as in lyaeus. Somali¬ land and Abyssinia. [2]
It flies year-round, with peaks from November to February. [3]
The larvae feed on Calodendrum capense , Vepris species, and Citrus species. [1]
Listed alphabetically: [1]
Papilio nireus belongs to a clade called the nireus species group with 15 members. The pattern is black with green bands and spots and the butterflies, although called swallowtails, lack tails with the exception of Papilio charopus and Papilio hornimani. The clade members are:
Papilio aristophontes is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is endemic to Comoros.
Papilio manlius is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is endemic to Mauritius.
Graphium angolanus, the Angola white lady, is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae (swallowtails). It is found in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Graphium porthaon, the coastal swordtail, cream-striped swordtail or dark swordtail, is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae, found in tropical western Africa.
Graphium colonna, the black swordtail or mamba swordtail, is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae (swallowtails). It is found in Africa.
Papilio desmondi, the Desmond's green-banded swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found in Africa.
Papilio phorcas, the apple-green swallowtail or green-banded swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found in Africa.
Papilio mechowi is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae found in Africa.
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.
Papilio charopus, the tailed green-banded swallowtail, is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus Papilio that is found in Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi.
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.
Graphium kirbyi, the Kirby's swordtail, is a butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is found along the coast of Kenya and from the coast of Tanzania, inland to Morogoro. The habitat consists of coastal forests.
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