Charaxes hansali

Ch. hansali Fldr. closely approaches Charaxes pelias in the markings, but has a broad light yellow discal band extending to the inner margin of the hindwing and the basal part of the upper surface is darker black-brown; the distal yellow spots in cellules 3—7 of the forewing are small and completely separated from the band; the yellow spots at the distal margin of the hindwing are streak-like and completely separated from the distal margin by the thick black marginal line; the tails are longer than in pelias ; the light-bordered spots in the basal part of the under surface have grey centres, as in pelias. Abyssinia and the adjacent parts of Somaliland. — baringana Rothsch. only differs from the type-form in the narrower discal band of the upper surface and the free red-brown spots at the distal side of the median band on the hindwing beneath. At Lake Baringo in British East Africa. [4]

The habitat consists of arid savanna.

The larvae feed on Salvadora persica, Osyris lanceolata, Colpoon compressum;[5] and Dobera glabra.Notes on the biology of hansali are provided by [6]

• C. h. hansali (northern, eastern and south-eastern Ethiopia, Somalia: north to the Wagga Mountains)
• C. h. arabica Riley, 1931 [7] (Oman)
• C. h. baringana Rothschild, 1905[8] (Tanzania: southern shores of Lake Victoria, eastern Rwanda, Kenya, northern Uganda, southern Sudan, southern Ethiopia)
• C. h. kulalae van Someren, 1975 [9] (Kenya: Mount Kulal, Ethiopia: south to Nighelli)
• C. h. yemeni Turlin, 1998 [10] (Yemen)

Historical attempts to assemble a cluster of presumably related species into a "Charaxes jasius Group" have not been wholly convincing. More recent taxonomic revision,[11] corroborated by phylogenetic research, allow a more rational grouping congruent with cladistic relationships. Within a well-populated clade of 27 related species sharing a common ancestor approximately 16 mya during the Miocene,[12] 26 are now considered together as The jasius Group.[11] One of the two lineages forms a robust clade of seven species sharing a common ancestor approximately 2-3 mya, i.e. during the Pliocene,[12] and are considered as the jasius subgroup.[11]

The jasius Group (26 Species)

Clade 1: jasius subgroup (7 species):[11]

• Charaxes jasius
• Charaxes epijasius [stat.rev.2005][11]
• Charaxes legeri
• Charaxes saturnus [stat.rev.2005][11]
• Charaxes pelias
• Charaxes castor
• Charaxes hansali

Clade 2: contains the well-populated three additional subgroups (19 species) of the jasius Group, called the brutus, pollux, and eudoxus subgroups.[11] Further exploration of the phylogenetic relationships amongst existing Charaxes taxa is required to improve clarity.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Charaxes hansalii.

Wikispecies has information related to Charaxes hansali.

• Victor Gurney Logan Van Someren, 1971 Revisional notes on African Charaxes (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae). Part VII. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) (Entomology)181-226.

[these links are non-functional since migration to BOLD-4. Update required]

• Charaxes hanseli hanseli images at Consortium for the Barcode of Life
• Charaxes hansali baringana images at BOLD
• Charaxes hansali yemeni images at BOLD verso