''Mimacraea'' is a genus of
butterflies
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 ...
in the family
Lycaenidae
Lycaenidae is the second-largest family (biology), family of butterflies (behind Nymphalidae, brush-footed butterflies), with over 6,000 species worldwide, whose members are also called gossamer-winged butterflies. They constitute about 30% of ...
. The species of this genus are
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
to the
Afrotropical realm
The Afrotropical realm is one of the Earth's eight biogeographic realms. It includes Sub-Saharan Africa, the southern Arabian Peninsula, the island of Madagascar, and the islands of the western Indian Ocean. It was formerly known as the Ethiopi ...
. As the name suggests, ''Mimacraea'' species are
mimics of species in the genus ''
Acraea
Acraea (Ancient Greek: means 'of the heights' from ''akraios'') was a name that had several uses in Greek and Roman mythology.
* Acraea, the naiad daughter of the river-god Asterion near Mycenae, who together with her sisters Euboea and Prosy ...
'' and related genera.
Species
*''
Mimacraea abriana''
Libert & Collins, 2000
*''
Mimacraea apicalis''
Grose-Smith & Kirby, 1889
*''
Mimacraea charmian''
Grose-Smith & Kirby, 1889
*''
Mimacraea costleyi''
Druce, 1912
*''
Mimacraea darwinia''
Butler, 1872
*''
Mimacraea febe''
Libert, 2000
*''
Mimacraea fulvaria''
Aurivillius, 1895
*''
Mimacraea gelinia''
(Oberthür, 1893)
*''
Mimacraea krausei''
Dewitz, 1889
*''
Mimacraea landbecki''
Druce, 1910
*''
Mimacraea maesseni''
Libert, 2000
*''
Mimacraea marginata''
Libert & Collins, 2000
*''
Mimacraea marshalli''
Trimen, 1898
*''
Mimacraea neavei''
Eltringham, 1909
*''
Mimacraea neokoton''
Druce, 1907
*''
Mimacraea neurata''
Holland, 1895
*''
Mimacraea paragora''
Rebel, 1911
*''
Mimacraea skoptoles''
Druce, 1907
*''
Mimacraea telloides''
Schultze, 1923
References
*Libert, M. (2000) ''Révision du genre ''Mimacraea'' Butler avec description de quatre nouvelles espèces et deux nouvelles sous-espèces''. A.B.R.I., Nairobi and Lambillonea, Tervuren, May, 2000:1-72.
External links
Royal Africa Museumhas quality images of ''Mimacraea''
at Markku Savela's ''Lepidoptera and some other life forms''
Seitz, A. ''Die Gross-Schmetterlinge der Erde'' 13: Die Afrikanischen Tagfalter. Plate XIII 63
Poritiinae
Taxa named by Arthur Gardiner Butler
Lycaenidae genera
{{Poritiinae-stub