''Amauris echeria'', the chief, is a

butterfly Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...

of the family

Nymphalidae The Nymphalidae are the largest family of butterflies, with more than 6,000 species distributed throughout most of the world. Belonging to the superfamily Papilionoidea, they are usually medium-sized to large butterflies. Most species ha ...

. It is found in southern

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

. The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the opposite wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingsp ...

is 55–65 mm for males and 63–70 for females. Adults are on wing year round (with peaks in summer and autumn). The larvae feed on '' Tylophora anomala'', ''

Tylophora stolzii ''Tylophora'' is a former genus of climbing plants or vines, first described as a genus in 1810. The genus was originally erected by Robert Brown for four species he described in Australia. It was synonymized with ''Vincetoxicum'' in 2018, a deci ...

'', '' Cynanchum chirindense'', '' Gymnema'' (including ''

Gymnema sylvestre ''Gymnema sylvestre'' is a perennial woody vine native to Asia (including the Arabian Peninsula), Africa and Australia. It has been used in Ayurvedic medicine. Common names include gymnema, Australian cowplant, and Periploca of the woods, and t ...

''), ''

Marsdenia ''Marsdenia'' is a genus of plants in the family Apocynaceae first described as a genus in 1810. It is named in honor of the plant collector and Secretary of the Admiralty, William Marsden (orientalist), William Marsden. The plants are native to ...

'' (including '' Marsdenia angolensis'' and '' Marsdenia racemosa'') and ''

Secamone ''Secamone'' is a genus of plant in family Apocynaceae, first described as a genus in 1810. It is widespread across much of Africa, northern Australia, southern Asia, with numerous species endemic to Madagascar Madagascar, officially the ...

'' (including '' Secamone africana'' and '' Secamone parviflora'')."''Amauris'' Hübner, 1816"
at Markku Savela's ''Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms''

Subspecies

left, ''A. e. katangae'' Neave, 1910 *''A. e. echeria'' – Cape to Natal, Zululand, Transvaal *''A. e. abessinica'' Schmidt, 1921 – Eritrea, northern Ethiopia *''A. e. chyuluensis'' van Someren, 1939 – south-eastern Kenya (Chyulu, Sagala, Emali, Teita) *''A. e. contracta'' Talbot, 1940 – western Kenya, Kitale *''A. e. fernandina'' Schultze, 1914 – Fernando Póo (Macías Nguema Island) *''A. e. jacksoni'' Sharpe, 1892 – Kenya west of the Rift Valley *''A. e. katangae'' Neave, 1910 – southern Zaire (southern Shaba), Zambia *''A. e. kikuyu'' Talbot, 1940 – eastern Kenya (Katamayu to Meru, Nyambeni) *''A. e. lobengula'' (Sharpe, 1890) – Rhodesia, southern Mozambique, southern Malawi (Mount Mlanje) *''A. e. meruensis'' Talbot, 1940 – northern Tanzania (Arusha, Moshi, Nogorongoro) *''A. e. mongallensis'' Carpenter, 1928 – southern Sudan, northern Uganda *''A. e. mpala'' Talbot, 1940 – highlands of Zaire *''A. e. occidentalis'' Schmidt, 1921 – Cameroon *''A. e. septentrionis'' Poulton, 1924 – northern Kenya (Marsabit, Nyiro, Kulal) *''A. e. serica'' Talbot, 1940 – southern Tanzania, northern Malawi *''A. e. steckeri'' Kheil, 1890 – southern Ethiopia, western Ethiopia, southern Sudan *''A. e. terrena'' Talbot, 1940 – western Uganda, eastern Zaire, north-western Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi *''A. e. whytei'' Butler, 1894 – southern Malawi (Zomba Plateau)

References

Seitz, A. ''Die Gross-Schmetterlinge der Erde'' 13: Die Afrikanischen Tagfalter. Plate XIII 24
nominate and ''jacksoni'' Sharpe, 1892
Seitz, A. ''Die Gross-Schmetterlinge der Erde'' 13: Die Afrikanischen Tagfalter. Plate XIII 25
ssp. ''lobengula'' misspelling Amauris Butterflies described in 1790 Butterflies of Africa Taxa named by Caspar Stoll {{Danainae-stub