Graphium macleayanus

Graphium macleayanus, the Macleay's swallowtail, is a butterfly belonging to the family Papilionidae. The species was named after Alexander Macleay.[2][3]

Macleay's swallowtail
Macleay's swallowtail (Graphium macleayanus moggana), Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park, Tasmania, Australia
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Papilionidae
Genus: Graphium
Species:
G. macleayanus
Binomial name
Graphium macleayanus
(Leach, 1814)[1]
Range of Macleay's swallowtail
  G. m. moggana;   G. m. macleayanus

Taxonomy

Macleay's swallowtail was first described by William Elford Leach in 1814. Two subspecies are recorded in Australia,[1] the nominate form, G. m. macleayanus and G. m. moggana, which was first described by Leonard Edgar Couchman in 1965.[4] The name is synonymous with Papilio macleayanus.

Description
Illustration

The caterpillar grows to a length of 4 cm. The pupa is green with thin yellow lines.

The adult female Macleay's swallowtail has a wingspan of 59 mm, whilst the adult male has a wingspan of 53 mm.[5] The upperside of the wing is green with white markings and black edges.[6] The lower surface is a deeper green with black, brown and white markings.[6] The lower wings are strongly tailed.[7]

Distribution and habitat

The Macleay's swallowtail is one of the most widely distributed swallowtail butterflies in Australia.[8] It is found in eastern Australia including the ACT, New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and Tasmania. It is the only swallowtail found in Tasmania.[9] The species has also been found on Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island, but not since 1893.[1] The habitat of the species includes urban areas, forests, woodlands and heath.[10]

Behaviour

The caterpillars are green, with small white dots all over the body and a humped thorax. They feed on the foliage of members in the Atherosperma, Cinnamomum, Cryptocarya, Daphnandra, Doryphora, Endiandra and Tasmannia genera.[11]

The adults feed on nectar from flowers, including the genera Leptospermum, Lantana and Buddleia.[5] The flight period is from August to March.[12]

See also

References
  1. "Macleay's swallowtail". CSIRO and Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. 18 September 2004. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  2. Herbison-Evans, Don; Newman, Stewart; Crossley, Stella (5 September 2009). "Graphium macleayanus (Leach, 1814)". Archived from the original on 11 October 2009. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
  3. Stacey, Robyn; Hay, Ashley (24 October 2007). Museum: the Macleays, their collections and the search for order. Cambridge University Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0-521-87453-3.
  4. "Names List for Graphium macleayanus (Leach, 1814)". Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. 9 October 2008. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  5. "Macleay's Swallowtail ( Graphium macleayanus )". OzAnimals.com. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  6. "Graphium macleayanus – JCU". Archived from the original on 9 July 2009. Retrieved 26 August 2009.
  7. Tasmanian year book, Issue 11. Australian Bureau of Statistics, Tasmanian Office. 1977.
  8. Australian natural history, Volume 14. Australian Museum. 1962.
  9. Charles Barrett; Alexander N. Burns (1951). Butterflies of Australia and New Guinea. N. H. Seward.
  10. "Macleay's Swallowtail Fact File". Australian Museum. 4 November 2009. Archived from the original on 30 September 2009. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  11. "Host taxa for Graphium macleayanus (Leach, 1814)". Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. 9 October 2008. Archived from the original on 5 May 2011. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  12. Daley, Elizabeth (2007). Wings: An introduction to Tasmania's winged insects. Riffles Pty Ltd.
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