''Argina amanda'', the cheetah, is a
moth
Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...
in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Erebidae
The Erebidae are a family of moths in the superfamily Noctuoidea. The family is among the largest families of moths by species count and contains a wide variety of well-known macromoth groups. The family includes the underwings ('' Catocala'') ...
. The species was
first described by
Jean Baptiste Boisduval
Jean Baptiste Alphonse Déchauffour de Boisduval (24 June 1799 – 30 December 1879) was a French lepidopterist, botanist, and physician.
He was one of the most celebrated lepidopterists of France, and was the co-founder of the Société entomol ...
in 1847.
Description
''Argina amanda'' has a wingspan up to across. The uppersides of the forewings are orange, except the black markings with some white around them. The hindwings are orange too, with black spots on the edges. The undersides of the wings are very similar to the uppersides. The caterpillars feed on the young leaves and pods of ''
Crotalaria
''Crotalaria'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae (subfamily Faboideae) commonly known as rattlepods. The genus includes over 700 species of herbaceous plants and shrubs. Africa is the continent with the majority of ''Crotalar ...
'' species (
).
Distribution
This species is widespread in tropical Africa (Angola, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, the Gambia, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe) and in Madagascar.
References
"''Argina amanda'', (Boisduval) Cheetah" ''African Moths''. via - Internet Archive.
"''Argina amanda''" ''ZipcodeZoo.com''. via - archive.today.
External links
"''Alytarchia amanda'': image 1" ''Flora of Zimbabwe''.
*
Moths of Sub-Saharan Africa
Moths of Madagascar
Moths of Réunion
Nyctemerina
Moths described in 1847
{{Nyctemerina-stub