Papilio menatius


Papilio menatius is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae.

Description

Papilio menatius is a large butterfly with a wingspan of about. The uppersides of the wings are black with yellowish bands and yellowish submarginal lines of spots.
The subspecies P. m. menatius present in Guyana is black with white spots at the center of the forewings. On the hindwings there are a submarginal row of red lines and a line of spots partly red and partly white. Subspecies P. m. victorinus is treated as a species by some authors.
The larvae of P. m. victorinus feed on Persea americana. Adults feed on flower nectar of various plants, including Lantana and Impatiens species.

Taxonomy

Papilio menatius is in the subgenus Pterourus Scopoli, 1777 which also includes the species groups: troilus species group, glaucus species group, the zagreus species group and the scamander species group. Papilio menatius is a member of the homerus species group. The members of this clade are:
and the enigmatic Papilio judicael known only from a handful of specimens and either a valid species from the Andean region, or a hybrid P. menatius × P. warscewiczii.

Subspecies

The following subspecies of Papilio menatius are recognised:
  • P. m. menatius
  • P. m. cleotas Gray, 1832
  • P. m. coelebs Rothschild & Jordan, 1906
  • P. m. coroebus C. Felder & R. Felder, 1861
  • P. m. ctesiades Rothschild & Jordan, 1906
  • P. m. eurotas C. Felder & R. Felder, 1862
  • P. m. laetitia Butler, 1872
  • P. m. lemoulti Rousseau-Decelle, 1933
  • P. m. lenaeus Doubleday, 1846
  • P. m. morelius Rothschild & Jordan, 1906
  • P. m. syndemis
  • P. m. victorinus Doubleday, 1844 - victorine swallowtail
  • P. m. vulneratus Butler, 1872

Distribution

This species can be found in southern North America and in most of South America.