Acraea rhodesiana is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found in central and northern Zambia and the DRC (Haut-Lomani).[3]

Acraea rhodesiana
male and female
upper and undersides 1 Acraea rhodesiana male 2 female
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Nymphalidae
Genus: Acraea
Species:
A. rhodesiana
Binomial name
Acraea rhodesiana
Synonyms
  • Acraea (Acraea) rhodesiana
  • Acraea mima Neave, 1910
  • Acraea rhodesiana f. flaviapicalis Overlaet, 1955

Description edit

 
Plate accompanying the original description by Wichgraf, F., 1909 1 Acraea rhodesiana male 2 Acraea rhodesiana female

A. rhodesiana Wichgr. (55 d, as aglaonice ; 60 b). Both wings above reddish orange-yellow, darkened at the base, especially on the hindwing; forewing with black apical spot 4 mm. in breadth and fine black line at the costal and distal margins, discal spots 4 to 6 large and angled, and placed immediately beyond the apex of the cell; marginal band on the upperside of the hindwing 2 mm. in breadth, black and almost unspotted; wings beneath with light yellow ground-colour; the hindwing spotted with reddish at the base or throughout, marginal spots large and whitish. The fore wing in the female with white subapical band, which in the male is absent or only indicated by light yellow colour. Rhodesia.

A. mima Neave is very similar to rhodesiana [now synonym] , but is easily distinguished by the fore wing in both sexes having a white subapical band in cellules 3 to 6 and especially by the apical half or in the female the greater part of the forewing above being blackish; on the under surface of the forewing the apical half is suffused with dark grey; otherwise agrees with rhodesiana and may well be merely a form of this. Southern Congo: Katanga; Rhodesia.[4]

Biology edit

The habitat consists of deciduous woodland.

The larvae feed on Basananthe reticulata.

Taxonomy edit

It is a member of the Acraea caecilia species group. See also Pierre & Bernaud, 2014.[5]

References edit

  1. ^ Wichgraf, F., 1909 Beschreibung neuer Formen der Gattung Acraea F. aus Rhodesia, Mashunaland und Angola. Berliner Entomologische Zeitschrift 53:240-247. Plate 6
  2. ^ "Acraea Fabricius, 1807" at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
  3. ^ "Afrotropical Butterflies: Nymphalidae - Tribe Acraeini". Archived from the original on 2012-08-10. Retrieved 2012-06-01.
  4. ^ Aurivillius, [P.O.]C. 1908-1924. In: Seitz, A. Die Grosschmetterlinge der Erde Band 13: Abt. 2, Die exotischen Grosschmetterlinge, Die afrikanischen Tagfalter, 1925, 613 Seiten, 80 Tafeln (The Macrolepidoptera of the World 13).Alfred Kernen Verlag, Stuttgart.  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  5. ^ Pierre & Bernau, 2014 Classification et Liste Synonymique des Taxons du Genre Acraea pdf

External links edit