''Pseudopontia'' is a genus of

butterflies 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 ...

found only in wet forests of tropical Africa. It is the only genus in the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

Pseudopontiinae. It was traditionally thought to contain only one species (

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

), ''

Pseudopontia paradoxa ''Pseudopontia paradoxa'' is a species of butterfly found only in wet forests of tropical Africa. It was traditionally thought to be the only species (monotypic) in the genus '' Pseudopontia'' and the subfamily Pseudopontiinae. However, a recent ...

''. However, a recent study showed there are at least five species of ''Pseudopontia'' which can be distinguished genetically and by details of wing veins. Each is found primarily in a different part of Africa, though several of the species have overlapping geographic distributions. It is considered

paradoxical A paradox is a logically self-contradictory statement or a statement that runs contrary to one's expectation. It is a statement that, despite apparently valid reasoning from true premises, leads to a seemingly self-contradictory or a logically u ...

because, despite being a true butterfly (''

Papilionoidea The superfamily Papilionoidea (from the genus '' Papilio'', meaning "butterfly") contains all the butterflies except for the moth-like Hedyloidea. The members of the Papilionoidea may be distinguished by the following combination of character ...

''), its antennae do not have the characteristic clubbed ends which are otherwise diagnostic of butterflies (''

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

'').

Species

* ''

'' R. Felder, 1869; found in rainforests in Cameroon, Nigeria, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Gabon * ''

Pseudopontia australis ''Pseudopontia australis'' is a butterfly in the family Pieridae. It is found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo and eastern Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: Républiq ...

'' F.A. Dixey, 1923 (formerly considered a subspecies); found in Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kinshasa), Congo (Brazzaville), and eastern Gabon, usually at low elevation * ''

Pseudopontia gola ''Pseudopontia gola'' is a butterfly in the family Pieridae. It is found in Sierra Leone and Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sie ...

'' S. Safian and K. Mitter, 2011; found in Sierra Leone and Liberia in far western Africa * ''

Pseudopontia mabira ''Pseudopontia mabira'' is a butterfly in the family Pieridae. It is found in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), i ...

'' K. Mitter and S. Collins, 2011; found in central Africa: in Uganda and Democratic Republic of the Congo within about 5 degrees latitude north and south of the Equator * ''

Pseudopontia zambezi ''Pseudopontia zambezi'' is a butterfly in the family Pieridae. It is found in riverine forests in the southern African highlands in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia and Angola , national_anthem = "Angola Avante"() , ima ...

'' K. Mitter and W. De Prins, 2011; found in riverine forests in the southern African highlands: in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia, and Angola, at elevations over 800 m above sea level

References

*Plötz, C. (1870) Pseudopontia Calabarica n. gen. et n. sp. ''Stettiner Entomologischer Zeitung'', 31, 348–349, 1 pl. *Felder, R. (1869) o title ''Petites Nouvelles Entomologiques'', 1, 30–31. *Felder, R. (1870) Gonophlebia (Globiceps), Paradoxa (Felder). ''Petites Nouvelles Entomologiques'', 1, 95. *Dixey, F.A. (1923) Pseudopontia paradoxa: its affinities, mimetic relations, and geographical races. ''Proceedings of the Entomological Society (London)'', lxi–lxvii +plate B. *Mitter, K.T., Larsen, T.B., et al. (2011). The butterfly subfamily Pseudopontiinae is not monobasic: marked genetic diversity and morphology reveal three new species of Pseudopontia (Lepidoptera: Pieridae). Systematic Entomology 36: 139-163.

External links

Pseudopontiinae
TOL

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Images representing ''Pseudopontia''
at

Consortium for the Barcode of Life The Consortium for the Barcode of Life (CBOL) was an international initiative dedicated to supporting the development of DNA barcoding as a global standard for species identification. CBOL's Secretariat Office is hosted by the National Museum of ...

Pieridae Pieridae genera {{Pieridae-stub