Papilio merope, CRAMER, 1777

Chainey, John E., 2005, The species of Papilionidae and Pieridae (Lepidoptera) described by Cramer and Stoll and their putative type material in the Natural History Museum in London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 145 (3), pp. 283-337 : 305-306

MEROPE CRAMER, 1777

Pap[ilio] Dan[aus] Cand[idus] merope Cramer, 1777: 87 , 149, pl.151, figs A, B [original plate 116, figs A, A] [junior primary homonym of Papilio merope Fabricius, 1775 (Satyrinae) ]. Java and ‘Isle d’Amboine’ [both localities erroneous; actually West African] (Mr A.Gevers).

Pap[ilio] Eq[ues] Achiv[us] merope, Stoll, 1782: 174 , 250, pl.378, figs D, E [original plate 347, figs A, A]. Sierra Leone (Baron Rengers)

Papilio Eques Achivus merope, Stoll, 1782b: 3 [No. 41].

Material examined. No potential Cramer/Stoll specimens located.

Current status. Invalid junior subjective synonym of Papilio (Princeps) d. dardanus Brown, 1776 ( Ackery et al., 1995).

MINOS CRAMER, 1779

( FIG. 17 )

Pap[ilio] Eq[ues] Troj[anus] minos Cramer, 1779: 4 , 175, pl.195, fig. A [original plate 164, fig. A]. ‘Indes Orientales, sur la Côte Occidentale de Sumatra’ [East Indies, on the west coast of Sumatra] [error; S. India] (Baron Rengers). Rothschild (1895) states that Cramer’s figure is that of a female with a male abdomen.

Papilio Eques Trojanus minos, Stoll, 1782: 2 [No. 4].

Material examined. 1 ♀, ex Felder collection labelled ‘ Coll van der Capellen’ ( BMNH (E)#665384), is a good match for original plate 164, fig. A, except that the abdomen is much duller than shown; the thorax is extensively damaged and has been re-pinned; the hindwings have been repaired and touched with paint; the female abdomen has been glued on but it is not possible to be sure if it is the original. The above female is sufficiently close to Cramer’s figure (and is a better match than most other specimens available in BMNH) that it could be the type specimen, if one accepts that Felder’s technician mislabelled it and that he may have also replaced the abdomen .

Current status. Valid species in Troides (s.s.) ( Häuser et al., 2003).

Figures

Figures 15–20. Fig. 15. Papilio lycidas Cramer (syntype). Fig. 16. Papilio lysander Cramer (syntype). Fig. 17. Papilio minos Cramer (specimen matching Cramer figure). Fig. 18. Papilio polydorus Linnaeus (specimen with ‘van Lennep’ label). Fig. 19. Papilio protenor Cramer (syntype). Fig. 20. Papilio sesostris Cramer (syntype).