''Charaxes candiope'', the green-veined emperor or green-veined charaxes, is a

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The group comprises ...

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 have a re ...

. It is common in sub-Saharan Africa.

Biology

The habitat is forest and savanna excluding arid savanna. It also occurs in gardens and agricultural areas. Notes on the biology of ''candiope'' are given by Pringle et al (1994), Larsen, T.B. (1991), Larsen, T.B. (2005) and Kielland, J. (1990). Flight period is from October to June.

Description

The

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

is 45–55 mm in males and 50–60 mm in females. The basic colour of the upperside wings is tawny or orange tawny, with a basal area slightly paler or pale ochre yellow. The unscaled veins and the costal edge of forewing are green. The hindwings have a submarginal black band with a series of tawny ochreous or whitish interstitial spots. The undersides of the forewings are clayish, slightly ochreous, while the hindwings are sepia colour. Forewings are rather falcate, while the hindwings have two small tails protruding from the lower edge.

Full description

A full description is given by

Walter Rothschild Lionel Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild, Baron de Rothschild, (8 February 1868 – 27 August 1937) was a British banker, politician, zoologist and soldier, who was a member of the Rothschild family. As a Zionist leader, he was present ...

and Karl Jordan, 1900 ''Novitates Zoologicae'' volume 7:287-524

page 364 et seq. (for terms see ''Novitates Zoologicae'' volume 5:545-60

Life history

Larvae have large green bodies and heads decorated with horns. They feed on '' Croton sylvaticus'', ''

Croton gratissimus ''Croton gratissimus'' (commonly known as lavender croton or lavender fever berry), is a tropical African shrub or small tree with corky bark, growing to 8 m and belonging to the family of Euphorbiaceae or spurges. Young twigs are slender ...

'', and ''

Croton megalocarpus ''Croton megalocarpus'' is a tree species in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is indigenous to ten countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Somalia, Kenya, Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, and Moz ...

''.

Distribution

This species can be found in most of the Afrotropical realm ( Sub-Saharan Africa)."''Charaxes'' Ochsenheimer, 1816"
at Markku Savela's ''Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms''

Taxonomy

''Charaxes candiope'' group. The group members are:Bernard Turlin, 2007 ''Schmetterlinge der Erde, Butterflies of the world'' Part 25 Nymphalidae XII, Charaxes II. Edited by Erich Bauer and Thomas Frankenbach Keltern: Goecke & Evers; Canterbury: Hillside Books. *''Charaxes candiope'' *''

Charaxes antamboulou ''Charaxes antamboulou'', the Madagascar green-veined charaxes, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. The species was first described by Hippolyte Lucas in 1872. It is found in Madagascar. The habitat consists of Afrotropical forests and ...

'' like next *''

Charaxes cowani ''Charaxes cowani'' is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found in eastern Madagascar. The habitat consists of montane forests at altitudes above 1,000 meters. Full description A full description is given by Walter Rothschild and Kar ...

'' like last *''

Charaxes velox ''Charaxes velox'' is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found on Socotra, an island in the Arabian Sea. Description A full description is given by Walter Rothschild and Karl Jordan, 1900 ''Novitates Zoologicae'' volume 7:287-524page ...

'' *''

Charaxes thomasius ''Charaxes thomasius'' is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found on the island of São Tomé. Description The basal area of the upperside forewing and a smaller basal area of the hindwing is light yellow. The rest is dark chestnut ...

References

Victor Gurney Logan Van Someren Victor Gurney Logan Van Someren (1886 in Melbourne – 24 July 1976) was a zoologist and entomologist. Van Someren was born in Australia. He attended George Watson's College and studied zoology at University of Edinburgh. He was also a dentis ...

, 1974 Revisional notes on African ''Charaxes'' (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae). Part IX. ''Bulletin of the British Museum of Natural History'' (Entomology) 29 (8):415-487
Seitz, A. ''Die Gross-Schmetterlinge der Erde'' 13: Die Afrikanischen Tagfalter. Plate XIII 32

External links

''Charaxes candiope'' images
at

Consortium for the Barcode of Life The Consortium for the Barcode of Life (CBOL) was an international initiative dedicated to supporting the development of DNA barcoding as a global standard for species identification. CBOL's Secretariat Office is hosted by the National Museum of ...

Images of ''C. candiope candiope''

Royal Museum for Central Africa The Royal Museum for Central Africa or RMCA ( nl, Koninklijk Museum voor Midden-Afrika or KMMA; french: Musée royal de l'Afrique centrale or MRAC; german: Königliches Museum für Zentralafrika or KMZA), also officially known as the AfricaMuse ...

(Albertine Rift Project)
Biodiversity Explorer

Tolweb

OutdoorphotoAfrican Butterfly Database
Range map via search candiope Butterflies described in 1824 Butterflies of Africa {{Charaxinae-stub