''Eurytides epidaus'', the Mexican kite swallowtail or long-tailed kite swallowtail, 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
Papilionidae
Swallowtail butterflies are large, colorful Butterfly, butterflies in the family Papilionidae, and include over 550 species. Though the majority are tropical, members of the family inhabit every continent except Antarctica. The family includ ...
. It is found in Mexico and Central America.
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 40–45 mm.
Species of Costa Rica
The larvae feed on ''Annona reticulata
''Annona reticulata'' is a small deciduous or semi-evergreen tree in the plant family Annonaceae. It is best known for its fruit, called custard apple, a common name shared with fruits of several other species in the same genus: ''Annona cherim ...
'' and ''Rollinia
''Rollinia'' is a genus of plants in the family Annonaceae. While it is widely recognised as a distinct genus a monograph published in 2006 advocates its inclusion in ''Annona'',Rainer, H. (2006)Monographic studies in the genus ''Annona'' L. (Ann ...
'' species
Subspecies
There are three recognised subspecies:
*''Eurytides epidaus epidaus'' (southern Mexico (Tamaulipas, Puebla, Veracruz, Tabasco, Yucatán, Quintana Roo, N. Oaxaca, N. Chiapas), Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica)
*''Eurytides epidaus tepicus'' (Rothschild & Jordan, 1906) western Mexico: Sinaloa, Nayarit, Jalisco, Colima)
*''Eurytides epidaus fenochionis'' (Salvin & Godman, 1868) (south-western Mexico: Michoacán, Guerrero, Morelos, Oaxaca, S. Veracruz, Chiapas)
References
Further reading
*Edwin Möhn, 2002 ''Schmetterlinge der Erde, Butterflies of the world'' Part XIIII (14), Papilionidae VIII: Baronia, Euryades, Protographium, Neographium, Eurytides. Edited by Erich Bauer and Thomas Frankenbach Keltern: Goecke & Evers; Canterbury : Hillside Books. All species and subspecies are included, also most of the forms. Several females are shown the first time in colour.
Eurytides
Lepidoptera of Mexico
Butterflies of Central America
Butterflies described in 1846
Fauna of Costa Rica
{{Papilionidae-stub