Papilio antimachus

Papilio antimachus, the African giant swallowtail, is a butterfly in the family Papilionidae. With a wingspan between 18 and 23 centimetres (7.1 and 9.1 in), it is the largest butterfly in Africa and among the largest butterflies in the world. The wings are long and narrow and the ground colour is orange brown with black markings. P. antimachus live in the tropical rainforests of west and central Africa. The distribution area (range) stretches from Angola, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Uganda. The male is larger than the female and can be seen in groups at nectar. The females show themselves less, continually flying high above the tree tops. The butterfly has no natural enemies because it is very toxic.

Female

African giant swallowtail
Male, upperside
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Lepidoptera
Family:
Papilionidae
Genus:
Papilio
Species:
Papilio antimachus
Binomial name
Papilio antimachus
Drury, 1782[1]
Synonyms
  • Drurya antimachus var. gigantea Watkins, 1899
  • Drurya antimachus ab. plagiata Stichel, 1903
  • Papilio antimachus f. parvus Reuss, 1922
  • Papilio antimachus f. karschi Reuss, 1922
  • Papilio antimachus f. rothschildiana Reuss, 1922
  • Papilio antimachus f. staudingeri Reuss, 1922
  • Papilio antimachus f. centrispila Le Cerf, 1924
  • Papilio antimachus f. melanescens Le Cerf, 1924
  • Papilio antimachus congolanus Dufrane, 1929
  • Papilio antimachus congolanus ab. vreuricki Dufrane, 1929
  • Papilio antimachus congolanus ab. pupillata Dufrane, 1929
  • Papilio antimachus congolanus ab. obsoleta Dufrane, 1929
  • Papilio antimachus congolanus ab. lagai Dufrane, 1929
  • Papilio antimachus congolanus ab. virgularia Dufrane, 1929
  • Papilio antimachus coffea Talbot, 1936
  • Papilio antimachus congolanus ab. burgeoni Dufrane, 1946

Subspecies
  • Papilio antimachus antimachus (Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, southern Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Congo, Central African Republic, western Democratic Republic of the Congo, southern Sudan, northern Angola)
  • Papilio antimachus parva Jackson, 1956 (eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda)[2]

References
  1. Papilio, Site of Markku Savela
  2. "Afrotropical Butterflies: File C – Papilionidae - Tribe Papilionini". Archived from the original on 2014-02-22. Retrieved 2012-05-09.


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