Charaxes xiphares
Encyclopedia
The Forest King Emperor or Forest King Charaxes (Charaxes xiphares) is a butterfly
of the family Nymphalidae
. It is found southern Africa
.
The wingspan
is 65–80 mm in males and 70–95 mm in females.
The larvae feed on Craibia brevecaudata, Scutia myrtina, Rhamnus prinoides
, Cryptocarya woodii, Cryptocarya woodii, Scutia myrtina, Chaetachme aristata, and Drypetes gerrardii.
Butterfly
A butterfly is a mainly day-flying insect of the order Lepidoptera, which includes the butterflies and moths. Like other holometabolous insects, the butterfly's life cycle consists of four parts: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Most species are diurnal. Butterflies have large, often brightly coloured...
of the family Nymphalidae
Nymphalidae
The Nymphalidae is a family of about 5,000 species of butterflies which are distributed throughout most of the world. These are usually medium sized to large butterflies. Most species have a reduced pair of forelegs and many hold their colourful wings flat when resting. They are also called...
. It is found southern Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
.
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is 65–80 mm in males and 70–95 mm in females.
The larvae feed on Craibia brevecaudata, Scutia myrtina, Rhamnus prinoides
Rhamnus prinoides
Rhamnus prinioides, the Shiny-leaf Buckthorn, is an African shrub or small tree in the family Rhamnaceae. It was first described by French botanist Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle in 1789.-Description:...
, Cryptocarya woodii, Cryptocarya woodii, Scutia myrtina, Chaetachme aristata, and Drypetes gerrardii.
Subpecies
Listed alphabetically.- C. x. bavenda van Son, 1935
- C. x. bergeri Plantrou, 1975
- C. x. brevicaudatus Schultze, 1914
- C. x. burgessi van Son, 1953
- C. x. desmondi van Someren, 1936
- C. x. draconis Jordan, 1936
- C. x. kenwayi Poulton, 1929
- C. x. kiellandi Plantrou, 1976
- C. x. kilimensis van Someren, 1972
- C. x. kulal van Someren, 1962
- C. x. ludovici Rousseau-Decelle, 1933
- C. x. maudei Joicey & Talbot, 1917
- C. x. nguru Collins, 1988
- C. x. occidentalis Pringle, 1995
- C. x. penningtoni van Son, 1953
- C. x. sitebi Plantou, 1981
- C. x. staudei Henning & Henning, 1992
- C. x. thyestes (Stoll, 1790)
- C. x. upembana Plantrou, 1976
- C. x. vumbui van Son, 1936
- C. x. walwandi Collins, 1989
- C. x. wernickei Joicey & Talbot, 1926
- C. x. woodi van Someren, 1964
- C. x. xiphares (Stoll, [1781])