Biology
provided by Arkive
The life cycle of the African giant swallowtail begins with the laying of a single, smooth, nearly spherical egg. From this egg hatches a larva, which, like most larvae of Papilio species, probably feed on plants of the Rutaceae family (3). The larvae possess an extensible, fleshy forked organ called the osmeterium in the first thoracic segment. The osmeterium is connected to a scent gland, and when the larva is threatened or disturbed, it thrusts out the osmeterium through a slit in the thorax, filling the surrounding air with a repulsive odour (2) (3). After going through five changes of skin, (instars), the chrysalis, or pupa, develops. The pupa is attached to a plant, and held in an upright position by a thread of silk around the middle (3).
Female African giant swallowtails are generally more retiring in their habits, while males may congregate at drinking spots or be observed flying swiftly alongside streams. Males of Papilio species can be highly aggressive, and sometimes jostle and fight while defending a territory along a stretch of river (4).
Conservation
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The African giant swallowtail has been recorded from several protected areas (5), including the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda (6). In 1991, the IUCN/SSC Lepidoptera Group published an action plan for the conservation of swallowtail butterflies, which recommended that all rainforest reserves within the distribution of the African giant swallowtail should be surveyed to see if this species is present. For those reserves that do hold populations of this unique butterfly, the adequacy of habitat protection should be assessed. More information on the African giant swallowtail's vulnerability to forest loss and degradation is also needed (5), to determine the status of this impressive species and inform any future conservation actions that may be necessary.
Description
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The beautiful African giant swallowtail has the distinction of being the largest butterfly in Africa (3). Its long, narrow wings are orange and brown, with black markings. Like other members of the Papilionidae family, the African giant swallowtail has well-developed legs, and the area at the front of the head between the eyes is hairy. This family is also recognised by very short palpi, short projections below the head between which the tongue is coiled (3). Female African giant swallowtails are considerably smaller than males, with less elongated forewings (2).
Habitat
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The African giant swallowtail inhabits primary tropical forest, up to 1,500 metres above sea level. Male African giant swallowtails are often encountered near streams or damp mud while the females often keep to the tree-tops and are rarely seen (2) (4)
Range
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Occurs in central and western Africa, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Congo Republic, Central African Republic, Gabon, Angola, Cameroon, Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Liberia and Sierra Leone (2).
Status
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Classified as Data Deficient (DD) on the IUCN Red List (1).
Threats
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Not enough is known about this giant butterfly species for the IUCN to assess its risk of extinction (1), but it is known that its forest habitat is being rapidly destroyed. This could swiftly deteriorate the status of a butterfly that is already scarce (5).
Comprehensive Description
provided by Memoirs of the American Entomological Society
Papilio antimachus Drury
Papilio antimachus Drury, 1782 [1770-1782], 3: 1-2; pi. 1 (Sierra Leone).
This spectacular butterfly inhabits the canopy of primary rainforest from Sierra Leone east to Uganda. Condamin and Roy (1963) record a male from the Nimba range and the species is well represented in Carnegie Museum by males from Cameroons, Congo, Central African Republic and Uganda. I collected only sight records, one of them at second hand.
Dr. George W. Harley, of the Ganta Methodist Mission, informed me that on several occasions he had seen a very large orange or brown butterfly soaring bird-like among the treetops in Wanau Forest. Undoubtedly he saw antimachus.
In late April, 1958 I motored in Guinea from Macenta to 'Nzerekore along the road that parallels the northern frontier of Liberia. At the top of the pass in the Wangazi range I stopped in an open place among the great trees where a large puddle had been left by the morning showers and found a cloud of butterflies flitting about or sipping at the mud. One of them was antimachus, but I missed netting it by inches.
Males sometimes descend to ground level at puddles or stream banks and this habit probably has led to the capture of most specimens in collections. Apparently because females remain in the canopy, they are very rarely taken.
- bibliographic citation
- Fox, R.M., Lindsey, A.W., Clench, H.K., Miller, L.D. 1965. The Butterflies of Liberia. Memoirs of the American Entomological Society vol. 19. Philadelphia, USA
Papilio antimachus
provided by wikipedia EN
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. It is much rarer in the west of its range (Guinea to Cameroon) than in the eastern parts of its range. It probably stays in forest canopy but males come down to mud-puddle. 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 treetops. It has been seen hill-topping in Liberia.[3] The butterfly may have no natural enemies because it is very toxic. The larval foodplant is unknown and nothing is published on the early stages (egg, larva, pupa). Cardiac glycosides found in the Imago by Miriam Rothschild [4] indicate that the so-far unidentified larva, most probably, sequesters foodplant toxins which persist through pupation into the imago as an aposematic protection against predation, and therefore that the larval foodplant is probably an asclepiad vine.
Subspecies
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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
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Papilio antimachus parva Jackson, 1956 — eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda[5][6]
- dorsal view of male imago
- lateral view of male imago
- wing venation of female
- magnified head of male
Illustrated by
Rippon (1894)
- dorsal view of female imago
- lateral view of female imago
- lateral view of male imago
- wing venation of male
Illustrated by Rippon (1894)
References
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^ Drury, D. 1782. Illustrations of Natural History 3: xxvi, 1-769 + 2pp. London.
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^ Papilio, Site of Markku Savela
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^ Sáfián, Sz. (2013). Observation of hill-topping behaviour by the Giant African Swallowtail - Papilio antimachus Drury, 1782 and other recent records from Liberia (West Africa) (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae). Shilap Revista de Lepidopterología. 41(163):323-329..
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^ Miriam Rothschild, T Reichstein, J Von Euw, R Aplin, RRM Harman Toxicon 8 (4), 293-296, 1970. Toxic lepidoptera.
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^ Jackson, 1956 Notes on the Rhopalocera of the Kigezi District of Uganda with descriptions of new species and subspecies J. E Afr. Nat. Hist. Soc. 23 (1) : 63-102, pl. 1-13 Full text
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^ "Afrotropical Butterflies: File C – Papilionidae - Tribe Papilionini". Archived from the original on 2014-02-22. Retrieved 2012-05-09.
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Papilio antimachus: Brief Summary
provided by wikipedia EN
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. It is much rarer in the west of its range (Guinea to Cameroon) than in the eastern parts of its range. It probably stays in forest canopy but males come down to mud-puddle. 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 treetops. It has been seen hill-topping in Liberia. The butterfly may have no natural enemies because it is very toxic. The larval foodplant is unknown and nothing is published on the early stages (egg, larva, pupa). Cardiac glycosides found in the Imago by Miriam Rothschild indicate that the so-far unidentified larva, most probably, sequesters foodplant toxins which persist through pupation into the imago as an aposematic protection against predation, and therefore that the larval foodplant is probably an asclepiad vine.
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