''Charaxes jasius'', the two-tailed pasha, is a butterfly in 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 the only European species of the genus ''
Charaxes
The rajah and pasha butterflies, also known as emperors in Africa and Australia, (genus ''Charaxes'') make up the huge type genus of the brush-footed butterfly subfamily Charaxinae, or leafwing butterflies. They belong to the tribe Charaxini, ...
''. Divergence of the Mediterranean species ''C. jasius'' from the last common ancestor it shared with its closest related species still flying in the Afrotropical realm most probably occurred around 2 mya, i.e. during the
''Charaxes jasius'' is a medium to large butterfly with a
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 ...
reaching 76–83 mm in males, the female being larger. Males up to 80–100 mm
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 ...
, with females even larger, may be found in Morocco. Each hindwing bears two tails, characteristic of most species of the genus. The spring seasonal brood is smaller in size compared with the second and sometimes third broods, and the two tails on each hindwing tend to curve somewhat towards each other resembling a pincer, less so in the later broods with slightly longer straighter tails. The upperside ground colour of the wings is dark brownish-black, with some changeable purplish sheen viewed at varying angles; forewing with suggestion of darker discal bars, postdiscal spots orange; hindwing with whitish patch near costal border, dusted with brownish scales; outer border of both wings deep orange-ochreous, divided by black-scaled veins. Hindwing with small submarginal blue spots, often vestigial; more developed in the female. There is some variation in the intensity of the ground colour, and in development of the postdiscal orange spots. The underside has a very characteristic mosaic appearance broadly similar to a number of related species, traversed by a jumble of bands and of brown, reddish, greyish and blackish patches, all edged with a filigree of white. Beyond the inner mosaic, a white complete discal band bridges across fore- to hindwings. The outer orange marginal coloration is present on the underside also. The female resembles the male but is larger.
File:Charaxes jasius MHNT CUT 2013 3 12 male Roquebrun 34 Dorsal.jpg, alt=C. jasius. Roquebrun, France. Male Upperside, ''C. jasius''. Roquebrun, France. Male Upperside
File:Charaxes jasius MHNT CUT 2013 3 12 male Roquebrun 34 Ventral.jpg, alt=C. jasius. Roquebrun, France. Male Underside, ''C. jasius''. Roquebrun, France. Male Underside
Type
This butterfly is the
type species
In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen( ...
of the genus ''
Charaxes
The rajah and pasha butterflies, also known as emperors in Africa and Australia, (genus ''Charaxes'') make up the huge type genus of the brush-footed butterfly subfamily Charaxinae, or leafwing butterflies. They belong to the tribe Charaxini, ...
''. Pg. 220 "Recognising this fact, Ochsenheimer (1816, Schmett. Europa, vol. 4) removed Papilio jasius from Paphia, and placed it instead in his own genus Charaxes, thus making P. jasius the type-species of the latter by monotypy." The type location is Barbaria,
*''C. jasius'' is a stable species with no currently recognised subspecies. It is found in Southern Europe, the Eastern Mediterranean, and North Africa.
Related species
Historical attempts to assemble a cluster of presumably related species into a "''Charaxes jasius'' Group" have not been wholly convincing. More recent taxonomic revision, corroborated by phylogenetic research, allow a more rational grouping congruent with cladistic relationships. Within a well-populated clade of 27 related species sharing a common ancestor approximately 16 mya during the
Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recent" ...
, 26 are now considered together as the ''jasius'' Group. One of the two lineages forms a robust
monophyletic
In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic ...
group of seven species sharing a common ancestor approximately 2–3 mya, i.e. during the
Pliocene
The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58 and are considered as the ''jasius'' subgroup. The second lineage leads to 19 other species within the Jasius group, which are split in to three well-populated subgroups of closely related species.
The ''jasius'' Group (26 Species).
Clade 1: the ''jasius'' subgroup (7 species):
*''Charaxes jasius''
*'' Charaxes epijasius'' tat.rev.2005ref name="Turlin 2005"/>
*'' Charaxes legeri''
*'' Charaxes saturnus'' tat.rev.2005ref name="Turlin 2005"/>
*'' Charaxes pelias''
*'' Charaxes castor''
*'' Charaxes hansali''
Clade 2: contains the three well-populated additional subgroups (19 species) of the jasius Group:
*the ''brutus'' subgroup (4 species):
*''
Charaxes brutus
__NOTOC__
''Charaxes brutus'', the white-barred emperor or white-barred Charaxes, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found in Africa (see subspecies section for detailed information).
Its flight period is year-round. Notes on the ...
Charaxes lucyae
''Charaxes lucyae'' is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found in Tanzania.
Very close to ''Charaxes eudoxus'' but with more dentate wing margins and
longer tails; there are also minor differences in the genitalia
The habitat cons ...
Charaxes musakensis
''Charaxes musakensis'' is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found in Cameroon. The habitat consists of montane forests at altitudes above 1,300 meters. Taxonomy
Known only from the type locality Musake Hut, Mount Cameroon. Related ...
This species occurs from Portugal and around the coastal
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on th ...
region to the Atlantic NW coast of Morocco, but it does not exist in the Afrotropical realm.
It occurs along the European Mediterranean coast from west
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, In recognized minority languages of Portugal:
:* mwl, República Pertuesa is a country located on the Iberian Peninsula, in Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Macaronesian ...
to the coastal islands of
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wit ...
(except for the northern
Adriatic sea
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...
coast), from the central peninsula of
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
to
Istria
Istria ( ; Croatian and Slovene: ; ist, Eîstria; Istro-Romanian, Italian and Venetian: ; formerly in Latin and in Ancient Greek) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic betwee ...
, and the coastline of southern
Anatolia
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The r ...
including
Samos
Samos (, also ; el, Σάμος ) is a Greek island in the eastern Aegean Sea, south of Chios, north of Patmos and the Dodecanese, and off the coast of western Turkey, from which it is separated by the -wide Mycale Strait. It is also a sepa ...
,
Ikaria
Icaria, also spelled Ikaria ( el, Ικαρία), is a Greece, Greek island in the Aegean Sea, 10 nautical miles (19 km) southwest of Samos. According to tradition, it derives its name from Icarus, the son of Daedalus in Greek mythology, wh ...
and
Rhodes
Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the S ...
Sardinia
Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label= Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label= Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, af ...
Crete
Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cypru ...
. Inland, the butterfly is found in locally in
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, ...
from
Huelva
Huelva (, ) is a city in southwestern Spain, the capital of the province of Huelva in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is between two short rias though has an outlying spur including nature reserve on the Gulf of Cádiz coast. The ria ...
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), an ...
and
Salamanca
Salamanca () is a city in western Spain and is the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The city lies on several rolling hills by the Tormes River. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Her ...
. In
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
, the butterfly is found isolated inland from
Provence
Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border ...
to
Lozère
Lozère (; oc, Losera ) is a landlocked department in the region of Occitanie in Southern France, located near the Massif Central, bounded to the northeast by Haute-Loire, to the east by Ardèche, to the south by Gard, to the west by Aveyron, ...
,
Ardèche
Ardèche (; oc, Ardecha; frp, Ardecha) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France. It is named after the river Ardèche and had a population of 328,278 as of 2019.Aveyron
Aveyron (; oc, Avairon; ) is a department in the region of Occitania, Southern France. It was named after the river Aveyron. Its inhabitants are known as ''Aveyronnais'' (masculine) or ''Aveyronnaises'' (feminine) in French. The inhabitants of ...
. Further around the Eastern Mediterranean coast, it occurs in
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
,
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...
,
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, and continues along much of North African coast to the Atlantic Moroccan NW coast as far as coastal
Tiznit
Tiznit or Tiznet ( ar, تزنيت, Tiznīt; ber, ⵜⵉⵣⵏⵉⵜ, Tiznit) is a town in the west coast of the Moroccan region of Souss-Massa, founded in 1881 by the Sultan Hassan I. It is the capital of Tiznit Province and recorded a popula ...
environs, venturing inland in a very few Moroccan locations as high as 2,400m asl.
Habitat
Its typical habitat around the Mediterranean Basin is the
Maquis shrubland
220px, Low maquis in Corsica
220px, High ''macchia'' in Sardinia
( , , ) or ( , ; often in Italian; hr, makija; ; ) is a shrubland biome in the Mediterranean region, typically consisting of densely growing evergreen shrubs.
Maquis is cha ...
, up to 700–800 meters above sea level. This comprises thick, mixed scrub forests, often on hillsides, in hot and dry regions. The butterfly is found wherever its larval host plants are abundantly available.
Natural history
The two-tailed pasha is a fast-flying butterfly that displays territorial behaviour. The butterfly also is a noted for hill-topping. The adults of both sexes are attracted to fermenting fruits; they are attracted to the ethanol contained therein, and can be baited with wine and other alcoholic beverages.
Life cycle
''Charaxes jasius'' is bivoltine or trivoltine , i.e. it has two or three generations per year depending on latitude and altitude.
Typically, the first batch of eggs are laid in May–June and the second in mid August–mid October. The second batch caterpillars spend the winter in the larval stage, and pupate the next spring. The female lays the eggs on the upper surface of the leaves of the host plant, laying no more than one egg per leaf.
The caterpillar is green, cylindrical and up to long. It has rings of yellow-white raised spots on the body, yellow lateral lines along the sides, and two yellow ocelli on the back. The head bears four horns facing backwards. The caterpillar makes a leaf tent from silken threads, to which it returns after feeding on surrounding leaves.
When the caterpillar is fully matured, it hangs on a twig and pupates. The pupa resembles a ripening fruit as it is first green and becomes brown as the imago develops inside. After a period that can range from two weeks to one month, the pupal case opens letting out the adult butterfly.
File:Egg of Charaxes jasius - Two-tailed Pasha.jpg, Egg
File:Charaxes jasius larva.jpg, Larva
File:Charaxes jasius pupa.jpg, Newly formed pupa
File:Pupa_of_Charaxes_jasius_just_before_hatching.jpg, Pupa ready for hatching
File:Charaxes jasius bl1.jpg, Adult
Larval food plants
The preferred larval foodplant is the Strawberry Tree (''
Arbutus unedo
''Arbutus unedo'' is an evergreen shrub or small tree in the family Ericaceae, native to the Mediterranean region and western Europe. The tree is well known for its fruits, which bear some resemblance to the strawberry — hence the common na ...
''), although secondary or perhaps accidental choices are known to include a few '' Osyris'' species.
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 ...
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 ...