''Papilio cacicus'' is a

Neotropical The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone. Definition In bioge ...

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

of the family

Papilionidae Swallowtail butterflies are large, colorful butterflies in the family Papilionidae, and include over 550 species. Though the majority are tropical, members of the family inhabit every continent except Antarctica. The family includes the larges ...

first described by

Hippolyte Lucas Pierre-Hippolyte Lucas (17 January 1814 – 5 July 1899) was a French entomologist. Lucas was an assistant-natural history, naturalist at the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle. From 1839 to 1842 he studied fauna as part of the scientific com ...

in 1852. It is found in

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

and

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

Habitat

''Papilio cacicus'' is an

indicator species A bioindicator is any species (an indicator species) or group of species whose function, population, or status can reveal the qualitative status of the environment. The most common indicator species are animals. For example, copepods and other sma ...

of primary mountain forest for instance in the

Cordillera de la Costa montane forests The Cordillera de la Costa montane forests is a montane ecoregion of the tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests biome, in the Venezuelan Coastal Range (''Cordillera de la Costa'') on the Caribbean Sea in northern Venezuela. Location The ...

in Venezuela and more generally in the

tropical Andes The Tropical Andes is northern of the three climate-delineated parts of the Andes, the others being the Dry Andes and the Wet Andes. The Tropical Andes' area spans . Geography and ecology file:Andes_clima.png, 200px, Map of the climatic regions ...

Subspecies

*''Papilio cacicus cacicus'' (Colombia, Venezuela) *''Papilio cacicus nesrinae'' Koçak, 1983 (western Colombia) *''Papilio cacicus inca'' Rothschild & Jordan, 1906 (Peru) *''Papilio cacicus upanensis'' Talbot, 1929 (Ecuador) *''Papilio cacicus mendozaensis'' Bollino & Sala, 1994 (Peru)

Taxonomy

''Papilio cacicus'' is a member of the ''homerus''

species group In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

. The members of this

clade A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...

are *''Papilio cacicus'' H. Lucas, 1852 *'' Papilio euterpinus'' Salvin & Godman, 1868 *''

Papilio garamas ''Papilio garamas'', commonly known as the magnificent swallowtail, is a species of Neotropical swallowtail butterfly found in Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama and Costa Rica. Description A large butterfly with a wingspan of 80 to 110 millime ...

'' (Geyer,

829 __NOTOC__ Year 829 ( DCCCXXIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * October 2 – Emperor Michael II dies after an 8-year reign in C ...

*''

Papilio homerus ''Papilio homerus'', commonly known as the Homerus swallowtail or Jamaican swallowtail, is the largest butterfly species in the Western Hemisphere. The species is endangered and faces a potentially bleak future. Only two small populations of the ...

'' Fabricius, 1793 *''

Papilio menatius ''Papilio menatius'' is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. Description ''Papilio menatius'' is a large butterfly with wingspan of about . Uppersides of the wings are black with yellowish bands and yellowish submarginal lines of spots. The ...

'' (Hübner, 819 *''

Papilio warscewiczii ''Papilio warscewiczii'' is a Neotropical realm, Neotropical species of swallowtail butterfly from the genus ''Papilio'' that is found in Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador. Habitat Montane forest in the Bolivian Yungas, Bolivian Yungas ecoregion. The ...

'' Hopffer, 1865 ''Papilio cacicus '' is in the subgenus ''Pterourus'' Scopoli, 1777 which also includes the species groups: ''troilus'' species group, ''glaucus'' species group, the ''zagreus'' species group and the ''scamander'' species group.

References

* *Lewis, H. L., 1974 ''Butterflies of the World'' Page 24, figure 15 (underside).

External links

Butterflies of America types

cacicus The caciques are passerine birds in the New World blackbird family which are resident breeders in tropical South America north to Mexico. All of the group are in currently placed in the genus ''Cacicus'', except the aberrant yellow-billed caciqu ...

Papilionidae of South America Butterflies described in 1852 {{Papilionidae-stub