Papilio filaprae


Papilio filaprae is a species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus Papilio that is found in Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, Angola and Equatorial Guinea. The species was first described by Ernst Suffert in 1904.

Subspecies

Papilio filaprae filaprae
  • ''Papilio filaprae musolanus''

Taxonomy

It is a member of the zenobia species group. In the zenobia group the basic upperside wing pattern is black with white or yellowish bands and spots. The underside is brown and basally there is a red area marked with black stripes and spots. In the discal area there is a yellowish band with black stripes and veins. Females resemble Amauris butterflies. Both sexes lack tails.
The clade members are:Papilio cyproeofila Butler, 1868Papilio fernandus Fruhstorfer, 1903Papilio filaprae Suffert, 1904Papilio gallienus Distant, 1879Papilio mechowi Dewitz, 1881Papilio mechowianus Dewitz, 1885Papilio nobicea Suffert, 1904Papilio zenobia Fabricius, 1775
Larsen, 2005 doubts that this is a valid taxon, suggesting that it is the equatorial subspecies of Papilio cyproeofila, which it closely resembles.