Bematistes epaea

Bematistes epaea
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Nymphalidae
Genus:	Bematistes
Species:	B. epaea
Binomial name
Bematistes epaea (Cramer, 1779)[1]
Synonyms
Papilio epaea Cramer, 1779 Acraea epaea (Cramer, 1779) Acraea (Acraea) epaea Papilio gea Fabricius, 1781 Planema epaea ab. sublutosa Strand, 1914 Planema epaea ab. angustifasciata Grünberg, 1910 Planema epaea bicolorata Le Doux, 1937 Planema epaea f. insolita Le Doux, 1937 Planema epaea f. aurata Le Doux, 1937 Planema epaea nigrita Le Doux, 1937 Acraea epitellus Staudinger, 1896 Planema epaea homochroa Rothschild & Jordan, 1905 Acraea epaea insulana Ackery, 1995 Planema epaea var. insularis Aurivillius, 1910 Planema epaea kivuana Jordan, 1910 Planema epaea lutosa Suffert, 1904 Planema epaea f. cremea Le Doux, 1937 Planema epaea var. melina Thurau, 1903 Planema paragea Grose-Smith, 1900 May be a full species

Bematistes epaea, the Common Bematistes, is a butterfly in the Nymphalidae family. It is found in Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, the Republic of Congo, Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi and Zambia.^[2] The habitat consists of forests and dense Guinea savanna.

Both sexes are mimicked by Elymniopsis bammakoo, Pseudacraea eurytus and Mimacraea darwinia, while the female is also the model for the female of Papilio cynorta. Acraea jodutta is probably a co-mimic.

The larvae feed on Lindaeckeria schweinfurthii, Lindaeckeria dentata and Adenia cisampelloides.

Subspecies

• Bematistes epaea epaea (Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, Congo, Angola, western Democratic Republic of Congo, north-western Tanzania, Zambia)
• Bematistes epaea angustifasciata d'Abrera, 1980 (central and southern Uganda, western Kenya)
• Bematistes epaea bicolorata (Le Doux, 1937) (south-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo)
• Bematistes epaea epitellus Staudinger, 1896 (coast of Kenya, coast of Tanzania)
• Bematistes epaea homochroa (Rothschild & Jordan, 1905) (southern Ethiopia)
• Bematistes epaea insulana Ackery, 1995 (Bioko)
• Bematistes epaea kivuana (Jordan, 1910) (Democratic Republic of Congo: east to Kivu)
• Bematistes epaea lutosa (Suffert, 1904) (eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda: west to the Bwamba Valley)
• Bematistes epaea melina (Thurau, 1903) (south-western Tanzania, Malawi: north to the shores of Lake Malawi)
• Bematistes epaea paragea (Grose-Smith, 1900) (Sudan, western Uganda, western Kenya, north-western Tanzania)

References

1. Acraea, Site of Markku Savela
2. Afrotropical Butterflies: Nymphalidae - Tribe Acraeini

External links

• Die Gross-Schmetterlinge der Erde 13: Die Afrikanischen Tagfalter. Plate XIII 58 a
• Die Gross-Schmetterlinge der Erde 13: Die Afrikanischen Tagfalter. Plate XIII 59 c paragea
• Die Gross-Schmetterlinge der Erde 13: Die Afrikanischen Tagfalter. Plate XIII 59 e homochroa
• Images representing Bematistes epaea at Bold
• Images representing Bematistes epaea melina at Bold
• Images representing Bematistes epaea paragea at Bold
• Images representing Acraea paragea at Bold.
• Images representing Acraea paragea kivuana at Bold.
• Acraea epaea epaea at Pteron