''Papilio sosia'', the medium green-banded 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 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 ...

. The species was first described 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 ...

in 1903.

Description

Forewing above in cellules 1 b—8 with distinct, small, usually double submarginal dots, but beneath without large submarginal spots; the median band formed almost as in ''

nireus In Greek mythology, Nireus (Ancient Greek: Νιρεύς) was a king of the island Syme (according to Diodorus Siculus, also of a part of Cnidia) and one of the Homeric Greeks in the Trojan War. He was the second most handsome man in the Greek ...

'', though the spot in cellule 2 covers the base of the cellule, but is more produced anally than the spot in 1 c, which does not reach the cell. — Sierra Leone to the Congo region and Uganda. The median band is straight and regular and never less than 1 cm in cell lb of the forewing, nearly always much wider.

Biology

The larva feeds on ''

Zanthoxylum ''Zanthoxylum'' is a genus of about 250 species of deciduous and evergreen trees, shrubs and climbers in the Family (biology), family Rutaceae that are native to warm temperate and Subtropics, subtropical areas worldwide. It is the type gen ...

'' and ''

Citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the family Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, mandarins, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. ''Citrus'' is nativ ...

''.

Subspecies

Subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

include: *''P. s. sosia'' (Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, southern Nigeria, western Cameroon) *''P. s. pulchra'' Berger, 1950 (Cameroon, Gabon, Congo, Central African Republic, northern Angola, Congo Republic) *''P. s. debilis'' Storace, 1951 Storace, L. (1951-1952). Recherches sur le groupe africain de ''Papilio nireus'' L. ''Lambillionea'' 51:44-52; 54-57; 73-76. (Uganda, northwestern Tanzania)

Taxonomy

''Papilio sosia'' belongs to a

clade In biology, a clade (), also known as a Monophyly, monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that is composed of a common ancestor and all of its descendants. Clades are the fundamental unit of cladistics, a modern approach t ...

called the ''nireus''

species group In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

with 15 members. The pattern is black with green or blue bands and spots and the butterflies, although called swallowtails, they lack tails with the exception of ''Papilio charopus'' and ''Papilio hornimani''. The clade members are: *''

Papilio aristophontes ''Papilio aristophontes'' is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is endemic to Comoros. It is listed as a red list species due to its rarity and the threats to its survival. The eggs are laid on the plant '' Toddalia asiatica' ...

'' Oberthür, 1897 *''

Papilio nireus ''Papilio nireus'', the green-banded swallowtail, narrow-banded blue swallowtail, or African blue-banded swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found in Sub-Saharan Africa. Description The wingspan is in males and in f ...

'' Linnaeus, 1758 *''

Papilio charopus ''Papilio charopus'', the tailed green-banded swallowtail, is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus ''Papilio'' that is found in Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi. Subspecies *' ...

'' Westwood, 1843 *'' Papilio chitondensis'' de Sousa & Fernandes, 1966 *'' Papilio chrapkowskii'' Suffert, 1904 *''

Papilio chrapkowskoides ''Papilio chrapkowskoides'', the broadly green-banded swallowtail, is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus ''Papilio'' that is found in the Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivo ...

'' Storace, 1952 *'' Papilio desmondi'' van Someren, 1939 *'' Papilio hornimani'' Distant, 1879 *''

Papilio interjectana ''Papilio interjectana'', the Van Someren's green-banded swallowtail, is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus ''Papilio'' that is found in Uganda and Kenya.Papilio manlius ''Papilio manlius'' is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is endemic to Mauritius. Description The discal band of the forewing in both sexes only composed of three spots (in cellules 3, 4 and in the cell); that of the hindwin ...

'' Fabricius, 1798 *'' Papilio microps'' Storace, 1951 *''Papilio sosia'' Rothschild & Jordan, 1903 *''

Papilio thuraui ''Papilio thuraui'' is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus ''Papilio'' that is found in Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bor ...

'' Karsch, 1900 *''

Papilio ufipa ''Papilio ufipa'' is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus ''Papilio'' that is found in Tanzania. The habitat consists of riparian and montane forests at altitudes from . Taxonomy ''Papilio ufipa'' belongs to a clade called the ''ni ...

'' Carcasson, 1961 *''

Papilio wilsoni ''Papilio wilsoni'' is a butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is found in Ethiopia. Taxonomy ''Papilio wilsoni'' belongs to a clade called the ''nireus'' species-group with 15 members. The pattern is black with green bands and spots and ...

'' Rothschild, 1926

References

Sources

*Carcasson, R.H. (1960). "The Swallowtail Butterflies of East Africa (Lepidoptera, Papilionidae)". ''Journal of the East Africa Natural History Society'
pdf
Key to East Africa members of the species group, diagnostic and other notes and figures. (Permission to host granted by The East Africa Natural History Society) * *Larsen, T.B. (2005). ''Butterflies of West Africa'' Apollo Books *Storace, L. (1951-1952). ''Recherches sur le groupe africain de Papilio nireus L. Lambillionea'' 51:44-52; 54-57; 73-76.

External links

Images from

Naturhistorisches Museum Wien The Natural History Museum Vienna () is a large natural history museum located in Vienna, Austria. The NHM Vienna is one of the largest museums and non-university research institutions in Austria and an important center of excellence for all matt ...

sosia Butterflies described in 1903 Butterflies of Africa Taxa named by Karl Jordan Taxa named by Walter Rothschild {{Papilionidae-stub