Graphium tynderaeus has an almost logical English name. It is the Electric Green Swordtail, or Green-Spotted Swallowtail, because of the patches of bright yellow-green or green-yellow on its wings. It does not, however, have the long "sword" or "swallow tail" appendage on each hind wing. Its wings have the same shape and structure as some other species' wings that do have "sword tails." Generally the tailless African Graphium species have been called Ladies, but this one seems to have impressed some observers as giving the illusion of a masculine personality; only a few sources call it a Green-Spotted Lady, and a few others call it the Green Prince. Species names can be assigned by the scientist who first described the species, or changed by a consensus of scientists later on, without having to make sense.
In Latin and Greek Tyndaraeus, or Tyndareus, was a king of Sparta. Most of the children born to his wife Leda were said to be the children of Zeus, who sneaked into her home in the form of a swan; some say he changed Leda into swan form, too, and they flew off together, and the children Leda had as a result came out in the form of eggs. According to one popular story Leda laid two big eggs, one containing fraternal twins Helen (the daughter of Zeus) and Clytemnestra (the daughter of Tyndareus), the other containing fraternal twins Castor (the son of Tyndareus) and Pollux (the son of Zeus. After that she had a few more children in the normal way. Apart from this aberration in his family life, Tyndareus was remembered for getting the kings of other Greek cities to promise to defend whomever Helen married. This led to the Trojan War. It was traditional to name Swallowtail species after characters in literature.
Graphium tyndaraeus are found in countries along the crook in the western coastline of Africa: "Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast,
Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial
Guinea, Gabon, Angola, Congo, Central
African Republic, Democratic Republic of
Congo, Tanzania," according to metamorphosis.org.za. They are "uncommon" wherever they live; one of the species that like to spread out across the land. Two or three males are sometimes photographed at one puddle but when tyndareus join big puddle parties, most of their drinking buddies belong to other species.
Photo by Seanbrogan, Republic of the Congo, October.
They live in and near forests, probably where a specific kind of tree grows. There are several generations in a year. Their habitat is consistently warm, with wetter and drier rather than warmer and colder seasons, and they probably are active all year.
Males typically have the high-contrast green and blackish gray coloring, while females can look yellow and brown. Museum specimens tend to fade to yellow and brown. They are well camouflaged among leaves and grass.
Photo by Tonyking.
At night, this one reflects light in an almost fluorescent way.
Photo by Kyledenobrega, Democratic Republic of the Congo, September.
Living butterflies move fast, and have been called the fastest-flying of all Swallowtails. Not easily observed in real life, they are a popular theme for art. Most online references to this species seem to be advertising photos, paintings, sometimes actual dead bodies, collectible postage stamps, and jewelry that preserve likenesses of these butterflies.
Males spend a lot of their time sipping brackish or polluted water, for minerals. Sometimes more than one sips at the same puddle. Sometimes they join puddle parties with smaller butterflies, but they are quick to fly away if approached. One naturalist lured one of these butterflies into camera range with half a boiled egg. (Eggs are rich in minerals.) More than one observer has attracted a male to a dirty shoe or sweaty sock.
Photo by Stefaneakame.
Subspecies names have been proposed: confluens, fraudatus, incompleta, nausinous, and ochrea. Of these nausinous was proposed as a separate species, and does show consistent differences from the typical tyndaraeus. The others seem to have been aberrant forms rather than true subspecies. Graphium latreillianus has also sometimes been regarded as a subspecies of tynderaeus but is more often considered a separate species.
Nothing is known about the life cycle of Graphium tynderaeus.
No comments:
Post a Comment