Acraea egina
Acraea egina, the elegant acraea, is a species of butterfly in the family Nymphalidae.
Acraea egina | |
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A. e. egina, Ghana | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Lepidoptera |
Family: | Nymphalidae |
Genus: | Acraea |
Species: | A. egina |
Binomial name | |
Acraea egina | |
Synonyms | |
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Subspecies
- Acraea egina egina (Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Congo, Central African Republic, Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, southern Sudan, Uganda, Ethiopia, western Kenya, northern Zambia)
- Acraea egina areca Mabille, 1889 (Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, eastern Zimbabwe, South Africa: Limpopo Province))
- Acraea egina harrisoni Sharpe, 1904 (coast of Kenya)
- Acraea egina pembanus Kielland, 1990 (Pemba)
Description
The wingspan of Acraea egina can reach 60–65 millimetres (2.4–2.6 in). Wings are basically brick red, with black spots on both forewings and hindwings and a quite large black margin on the hindwing upperside. These butterflies are closely mimicked by Pseudacraea boisduvali and by Graphium ridleyanus in the shade of color, in the cut of the wings and in the pattern of markings. The larvae of Acraea egina feed on Adenia lobata and Rawsonia species. They are whitish with black rings and black tubercules, while the pupae are pinkish brown.
Distribution
This species can be found in Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic, Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Uganda, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and South Africa.[2]
Habitat
The habitats of this species mainly consists of dry forests and savannah, but it also prefers clearings and open areas in the rainforest.
Gallery
- A. e. egina, Ghana
- A. e. egina in flight, Ghana
- Illustration of Acraea egina figures 1 and 2 as Acraea khara
References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Acraea egina. |
Wikispecies has information related to Acraea egina |
- "Acraea Fabricius, 1807" at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
- "Afrotropical Butterflies: Nymphalidae - Tribe Acraeini". Archived from the original on 2012-08-10. Retrieved 2012-05-31.
External links
- Images representing Acraea egina at Bold
- Images representing Acraea egina bellehui at Bold
- Acraea egina egina at Pteron
- Learn About Butterflies
- Mimicry in butterflies