Graphium policenes is a very popular African butterfly called the Common Swordtail. It is also called the Small Striped Swordtail, as distinct from G. antheus, the Large Striped Swordtail. Sometimes it's also called the Marbled Swordtail, and sometimes the Turquoise-Spotted Swordtail.
At least it does have long sword-shaped tails on its hind wings, unlike some butterflies whose English names include "swordtail."
Photo by Danyparis, Cote d'Ivoire, March 2024.
Well...it always starts with long sword-shaped tails. It can survive if the tails are lost by misadventure.
Photo by Josephizang, May 2022.
Not believed to be endangered, this species is well represented at commercial sites. It can be bought (dead or alive, but usually dead) as a collection starter; its wings, preserved in clear plastic, are for sale as jewelry, and of course pictures of it can be found on just about anything. It's been featured on several postage stamps, some available for sale.
List of a dozen postage stamps featuring Graphium policenes at https://www.stampdata.com/thing.php?id=25094&offset=0 .
In Equatorial Guinea these butterflies, along with native bird and other species, have even been portrayed--in color!--on coins:
Some people who claim to be selling Graphium policenes, or images thereof, are actually selling different species.
Regular readers already know how several butterfly species originally called Papilio were split off into the genus Graphium, and how some now want to split Graphium into separate genera in which policenes would be classified in the genus Arisbe, but why policenes? Whatever the name may suggest to English-speaking readers, it's Greek. In English, as an ordinary man's name it's spelled Polyxenes, and as the name of a literary character it's found only in the feminine form, Polyxene or Polyxena, a daughter of Priam and Hecuba. Not mentioned in Homer's Iliad, she appears in other stories of the Trojan War, with some disagreement on the details--one author mentions her long black hair, another says it was blonde, and so on. She was betrothed to Achilles, apparently against her will; calling her "most pure" and saying that she "remained chaste" in spite of everything probably means she foiled attempts at rape. Euripides accuses her of complicity in Achilles' death and says Achilles' ghost demanded that she be sacrificed. Other sources say she asked to be sacrificed, or committed suicide, after her brothers killed Achilles. In any case she lived and died a virgin princess. Butterflies show no interest in the concepts of virginity or monarchy, but people have to call them something.
Next week's butterfly, Graphium policenoides, was not named after a character but after this species. Policenoides means "shaped like policenes."
Widely distributed in central Africa, often found in descriptions of other butterflies that look similar but aren't it, G. policenes has a wingspan of about 6cm, up to 2.5 inches. Females are slightly bigger than males, most females between 6 and 6.5cm and most males between 5.5 and 6cm. As with other bluish-winged Swallowtails, most if not all the blue color comes from the way light strikes the wings, so the same individual may look bright blue or green, white, or grayish depending on the light. They are said to fly very high and fast.
Two subspecies are generally recognized: Graphium policenes policenes and G.p. telloi. Some sources list Graphium policenes biokoensis. Others count biokoensis as a separate species or list it as a subspecies of some other similar-looking species. Graphium biokoensis and Graphium liponesco are sometimes described as two distinct species that happen to look alike but aren't found in the same places. They seem to be different from Graphium policenes but look the same. A few older sources also list a subspecies sudanicus, now considered just an older name for telloi. One source lists a subspecies laurentia, which looks as if it's usually classified as a different kind of butterfly.
Other names under which this species has been discussed, according to Funet.fi, include agapenor, coussementi, polixenus, pompilius, and scipio.
For butterfly collectors the rule is that antheus, which is not always all that much bigger, has S-shaped pale bars across the front edge of the fore wings, rather than relatively straight ones, and liponesco and biokoensis have narrower wings with relatively more black and less white. A fuller discussion by Torben B. Larsen is available:
However, specialist sites indicate that some individuals puzzle even experts.
Graphium policenes policenes photographed by Jakob, December 2013.
Graphium policenes telloi (Tello's Swordtail) photographed by Joan Outside, June 2023. Much less information is available about telloi, possibly because the subspecies look so much alike and their ranges overlap. Telloi's range is, however, smaller. INaturalist, which has so many photos of Graphium policenes generally and of G.p. policenes that it's set up pages for photos from specific nature parks, shows only four photos positively identified as telloi.
Maps of where to find these butterflies are available at ABDB-Africa, which counts biokoensis as a subspecies of policenes.
This species flies and breeds continuously when weather permits, which in most of its range is continually. It can live on several host plants; Wikipedia lists
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Uvaria caffra, Artabotrys monteiroae, Uvaria bukobensis, Uvara chamae, Landolphia buchannani, Landolphia ugandensis, Polyalthia species, Annona reticulata, Annona senegalensis, Annona squamosa, and Monanthotaxis caffra.
"
Photo by Mortenchristensen, Tanzania, November 2024. The underwings are consistently browner than the upper wings, and usually show some yellow-green; their color, too, depends on their angle to the light.
Photo by Cherisea, November 2021, South Africa.
Photo by Hippolytep38, 2019, Cote d'Ivoire. Some of the Graphiums seem attracted to anything of that sky-blue or turquoise color that shows on some species' upper wings. INaturalist shows a disproportionate number of photos of Graphium policenes fluttering around bright blue objects as distinct from other colors.
Of course, some of those objects are shoes. Graphium policenes are one of the Swallowtail species that are attracted to the mineral salts in human sweat...
Photo by Botalex, 2013. These "Common" Swallowtails can, like some other Swallowtail species, be a little too friendly with humans. Especially on a hot day.
The life cycle of Graphium policenes seems typical for the Graphiums. Male butterflies eclose a few days short of sexual maturity and complete their physical development by drinking mineral-rich liquids, composting brackish or polluted water. The species is most easily observed when male butterflies are drinking in groups with other male butterflies, often including several different species.
Photo by Craigpeter, November 2022, showing a typical mixed group.
(A delightful description of some butterflies that might join one of these groups, or not, in Uganda, is at https://www.semulikibutterflies.com/family-papilionidae . Not much information is given about any species but nice clear pictures are given for most species discussed.)
Smaller white and yellow butterflies are often observed around the edges of groups of Swallowtails. Some of these butterflies seem unintimidated by Graphium policenes' greater size, but often, as in this video, they keep to themselves, out of the bigger butterflies' way:
Females eclose full of eggs they are eager to start unloading, and sometimes flutter around the edges of groups of male butterflies, checking out prospective mates. Each individual may, if lucky, have about to weeks to fly.
After mating males have nothing to do but go back to their drinking buddies and continue sipping polluted water, though they get most of their food from flower nectar.
Photo by Charleyhesse, 2000, Ghana. White and light-colored flowers may be preferred. An important consideration for Swallowtails is relatively shallow flowers. For their size they have smaller probosces than most butterflies; they can't get at the nectar inside a deep flower.
Photo by Magdastlucia, February 2018.
After mating the males are biologically disposable, though they may try to mate again if they see a chance. Sometimes their preferred puddles, or leks, attract enough spent male butterflies to attract the red-headed agamid lizard, which eats them. Like the other Graphiums they eat leaves that are mildly toxic and discourage most predators...not all.
Females spend most of their lives placing their eggs on suitable host leaves. Caterpillars are relatively small and may spend most or all their caterpillar lives on one big, fast-growing tropical leaf.
Photo by Magdastlucia, 2018, South Africa. Graphium caterpillars start out in life with harmless bristles that probably make them harder or at least less pleasant for predators to swallow.
Photo by Wolfachim, January 2011. As the caterpillars grow and molt, the bristles are smaller in each instar.
They typically molt through five skins in less than two weeks. Pupae hang by threads from leaves; depending on the weather the adult butterfly may emerge in a week or stay in the pupal shell for several months.
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