''Papilio homothoas'', the false giant swallowtail, is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

swallowtail butterfly 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 larg ...

from the

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

Papilio ''Papilio'' is a genus in the swallowtail butterfly family, Papilionidae, as well as the only representative of the tribe Papilionini. The word ''papilio'' is Latin for butterfly. It includes the common yellow swallowtail ('' Papilio machaon'') ...

'' that is found in

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

, and

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

Description

P. homothoas R. & J. (7c). Tail shorter and more rounded at the tip than in the '' thoas''-forms from South America; no cell-spot on the forewing. Genitalia quite different from the organs of ''P. thoas''; instead left of the long anal clasper of ''thoas'' there is a short fork, the teeth of which are curved right and harpe broad, rounded. Orinoco, Colombia, Marguerita Island off the coast of Venezuela. Jordan, K. in Seitz, A.(1908).''The Macrolepidoptera of the World'' 9: The Rhopalocera of the Indo-Australian faunal region . Papilionidae 11-118.

Biology

The larvae of ''P. homothoas'' feed on plants of the genera ''

Ruta ''Ruta'' (commonly known as rue) is a genus of strongly scented evergreen subshrubs, 20–60 cm tall, in the family Rutaceae, native to the Mediterranean region, Macaronesia and southwest Asia. About ten species are accepted in the genus. ...

'' and ''

Citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the family Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, mandarins, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. ''Citrus'' is nativ ...

'' (Rutaceae).

Taxonomy

''Papilio machaonides'' is a member of the ''

Papilio thoas ''Papilio thoas'', the king swallowtail or Thoas swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found in the southernmost United States, Mexico, Central America and South America (as far south as Argentina and Uruguay). The specie ...

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 ...

References

homothoas Butterflies described in 1906 Papilionidae of South America Butterflies of Central America Taxa named by Walter Rothschild Taxa named by Karl Jordan Lepidoptera of Colombia Lepidoptera of Venezuela Butterflies of Trinidad and Tobago Lepidoptera of Costa Rica Lepidoptera of Panama {{Papilionidae-stub