''Andriasa contraria'' is a

moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...

of the family

Sphingidae The Sphingidae are a family of moths commonly called sphinx moths, also colloquially known as hawk moths, with many of their caterpillars known as hornworms. It includes about 1,450 species. It is best represented in the tropics, but species ar ...

. It is known from tropical Africa, including

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. It is a very variable species and is common in all habitats except deserts and high mountains. The length of the forewings is 25–31 mm for males. The larvae have been recorded feeding on the leaves of ''

Spathodea campanulata ''Spathodea'' is a genus in the plant family Bignoniaceae. The single species it contains, ''Spathodea campanulata'', is commonly known as the African tulip tree. The tree grows between tall and is native to tropical dry forests of Africa. It h ...

''. Other recorded food plants include '' Newboldia'' and '' Markhamia'' species.

Subspecies

*''Andriasa contraria contraria'' (South Africa to Tanzania, East Africa and Ethiopia) *''Andriasa contraria diffusus'' (Rothschild & Jordan, 1910) (Eritrea) *''Andriasa contraria submarginalis'' (Walker, 1865) (West Africa to the Congo, Uganda and west Kenya) *''Andriasa contraria suffusa'' (Walker, 1869) (Cameroon)

References

Smerinthini Moths described in 1856 Moths of Africa Taxa named by Francis Walker (entomologist) {{Smerinthini-stub