Sunday 17 November 2013

Papilio demodocus (Esper 1798)

So... it's been awhile.

Say hello to my version of an apology:

Photographed in Chongwe, Lusaka, Zambia, in October 2011, using an Olympus E-420 with Zuiko 40-150mm lens and 3 KOOD magnifiers. 
 This rather lovely butterfly, found still drowsy on a communal perch on a morning after heavy rain, is the Citrus Swallowtail,

Papilio demodocus 
(Esper, 1798)

As you may expect from the common name, it is associated with citrus trees; in it's native range of Sub-Saharan Africa, it can be a minor pest of cultivated citrus trees.  

Before we dive into the taxonomy, here's another angle for you:




- Papilionini 
- Papilioninae
- Papilionidae  
- Papilionoidea  
- Rhopacera         
- Bombycina           
- Cossina                   
- Ditrysia                      
- Heteroneura                  
- Neolepidoptera                
- Glossina                             
- Lepidoptera                         
- Amphiesmenoptera                
- Panorpida                                 
- Endopterygota                               
- Eumetabola                                         
-  Neoptera                                                
- Metapterygota                                            
- Pterygota                                                         
- Dicondylia                                                         
- Insecta                                                                 
- Hexapoda                                                       
- Arthropoda                                                       
- Ecdysozoa                                                            
- Protostomia                                                            
- Nephrozoa                                                                
- Bilateralia                                                                     
- Eumetazoa                                                                      
- Animalia                                                                             
- Eukaryota                                                                             

  

And, before my battery dies, that is all, folks!