Papilio cynorta

Papilio cynorta, the mimetic swallowtail or common white banded papilio, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found in Africa, including Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, southern Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, the Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.

Papilio cynorta
In Ghana
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Papilionidae
Genus:	Papilio
Species:	P. cynorta
Binomial name
Papilio cynorta Fabricius, 1793[1][2][3]
Synonyms
Papilio zerynthius Boisduval, 1836 Papilio boisduvallianus Westwood, 1842 Papilio triptolemus Ehrmann, 1918 Papilio cynorta norcyta Suffert, 1904 Papilio gallienus peculiaris Neave, 1904 Papilio cynorta f. lavochrea Le Cerf, 1924 Papilio cynorta f. ochrospila Le Cerf, 1924 Papilio cynorta f. acraeamimus Bryk, 1928 Papilio cynorta f. albofurculatus Bryk, 1928 Papilio cynorta f. parageoides Stoneham, 1944 Papilio cynorta cynorta f. agayana Stoneham, 1951 Papilio cynorta cynorta f. bwambensis Stoneham, 1951

Adult females mimic Bematistes epaea, the common bematistes butterfly.

The larvae feed on Clausena, Vepris, Calodendrum, Citrus and Fagara species.

Taxonomy

Papilio cynorta is the nominal member of the cynorta species group. The members of the clade are:

• Papilio arnoldiana Vane-Wright, 1995
• Papilio cynorta Fabricius, 1793
• Papilio plagiatus Aurivillius, 1898

References

1. Fabricius, J.C. 1793. Entomologia Systematica emendata et aucta 3 (1): [vi], 1-488. Hafniae.
2. "Afrotropical Butterflies: File C – Papilionidae - Tribe Papilionini". Archived from the original on 2014-02-22. Retrieved 2012-05-09.
3. Savela, Markku. "Papilio cynorta Fabricius, 1793". Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms. Retrieved March 29, 2018.

• Carcasson, R. H. (December 1960). "The Swallowtail Butterflies of East Africa (Lepidoptera, Papilionidae)". Journal of the East Africa Natural History Society. (which contains a key to East Africa members of the species group, diagnostic and other notes and figures)

External links

• Owen, D. F. (1974). "Exploring Mimetic Diversity in West African Forest Butterflies". Oikos. 25 (2): 227-236.
• Collins, N. Mark; Morris, Michael G. (1985). Threatened Swallowtail Butterflies of the World: The IUCN Red Data Book. Gland & Cambridge: IUCN. p. 103. ISBN 978-2-88032-603-6 – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.