Subfamily Heliconiinae.: A largely pantropical group, with one of the five tribes found in the Holarctic Region.
Tribe Acraeini: There are two Afrotropical genera contained within this tribe; Telchinia and Acraea, both represented at Semuliki. There are 138 described Afrotropical species within this tribe with 104 species recorded in Uganda. At Semuliki a total of 45 species from both genera have been recorded: 25 from the genus Telchinia and 20 species of Acraea, contributing to a third of the Ugandan species total.
Genus Cymothoe: There are 15 species of the Afrotropical genus Cymothoe so far recorded at Semuliki from a.continent total of 78 (Williams, 2018) and a Ugandan total of 17 (Williams, 2015) or 90% of Uganda's total. The two Ugandan species not being recorded at Semuliki being C. distincta and C. indamora, but with both these species being recorded either in the Ituri Forest or Semliki Valley (Ducarme, 2018) it is a distinct possibility that they will also be found in Semuliki. Only three species are frequently sampled in traps and these are C. sangaris, C. cyclades and C. confusa. This genus has been categorised into clades nd the most commonly trapped species C. confusa had a distinctly clumped distribution within Semuliki. Species from this genus were observed more in the forest midstorey as compared to the preference of the forest floor for the genera Bebearia, Euphaedra and Euriphene.
Genus Cymothoe: There are 15 species of the Afrotropical genus Cymothoe so far recorded at Semuliki from a.continent total of 78 (Williams, 2018) and a Ugandan total of 17 (Williams, 2015) or 90% of Uganda's total. The two Ugandan species not being recorded at Semuliki being C. distincta and C. indamora, but with both these species being recorded either in the Ituri Forest or Semliki Valley (Ducarme, 2018) it is a distinct possibility that they will also be found in Semuliki. Only three species are frequently sampled in traps and these are C. sangaris, C. cyclades and C. confusa. This genus has been categorised into clades nd the most commonly trapped species C. confusa had a distinctly clumped distribution within Semuliki. Species from this genus were observed more in the forest midstorey as compared to the preference of the forest floor for the genera Bebearia, Euphaedra and Euriphene.
BUTTERFLY
Research, Conservation and Education
Semuliki National Park, Uganda
Genus Bicyclus
There are around 100 species of the Afrotropical genus Bicyclus so far described and the genus had been undergoing a major revision of certain groups. There have been 28 Bicyclus species recorded from Semuliki (including B. mesogenina, B. moyses and B. dentata, which were not included in the published Semuliki checklist) or possibly 29 (depending on the alboplaga/xenoides taxonomic status). A number of species display seasonal polymorphism and B. vulgaris, B. mesogena and B. buea were three of the most common fruit-feeding assemblage species sampled in the fruit traps. Some females from a number of species are difficult to differentiate (buea, smithi, sophrosyne, golo and sanaos or vulgaris and sandace) and in this instance I will still include a female specimen for reference although the specific species can't be verified. The website follows the species groups categories detailed in the 'Systematic checklist (with complete synonymic listing) of currently known Bicyclus species by Aduse-Poku et al., (2016).
The genus Bicyclus is one of the more tricky Afrotropical butterfly genera to determine species identification, most especially between females of certain species (discussed below). Species variation can occur between locations or regions and especially between seasonal forms and species presence is often confirmed by species identification of the male (as opposed to the Black Charaxes group which requires female presence). Any suggestions regarding identification confirmation or mistakes for the species below would be welcome.
Evadne species group and the alboplaga-complex. Of the four species listed within this group (assuming Bicyclus alboplaga and B. xenoides are the same species), the two were treated as separate species in 'The butterflies (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidia) of Semuliki National Park, western Uganda',. The 'two' species show little genetic differences and are morphologically variable over their range and B. xenoides is most probably a junior synonym of B. alboplaga, although further research is required for a definitive conclusion. The field images below show a representation of the specimens (females and males) recorded from Semuliki.
Bicyclus alboplaga (Rebel, 1914)
Bicyclus alboplaga (male, under and upperside)
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Bicyclus alboplaga (female, underside)
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Bicyclus albolpaga (female, upperside)
Bicyclus alboplaga (female undersides, colour variation)
Ignobilis species group. There is only one species: B. ignobilis recorded at Semuliki from this group of six described species. Only one female specimen was ever trapped and female upper and underside is much lighter. The species group was revised by Brattström, (2015).
Bicyclus ignobilis (Butler, 1870)
Bicyclus ignobilis (female, under and upperside)
Bicyclus ignobilis (female, underside)
Bicyclus ignobilis (male and female)
Sciathis species group. This species group was revised by (Brattström et al.), in 2016. Of the 13 described species in this group, three are recorded at Semuliki: Bicyclus hyperanthus, uniformis and procora.
Bicyclus hyperanthus (Bethune-Baker, 1908)
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Bicyclus hyperanthus (male, under and upperside)
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Bicyclus hyperanthus (female, under and upperside)
Bicyclus uniformis (Bethune-Baker, 1908)
Bicyclus uniformis (male, under and upperside)
Bicyclus uniformis (female, upper and underside)
Bicyclus procora (Karsch, 1893)
Bicyclus procora (male, under and upperside)
Bicyclus procora (female, upperside)
Bicyclus procora (female, underside)
Hewitsoni species group. A species group with 12 described species. Only two species are recorded at Semuliki: Bicyclus graueri which is a common species and B. sebetus which was rarely trapped.
Bicyclus sebetus (Hewitson, 1877)
Bicyclus sebetus (male, upper and underside)
Bicyclus sebetus (male, upperside showing absence of subapical band)
Bicyclus sebetus (male, underside)
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Bicyclus sebetus (female, upper and underside)
Bicyclus graueri graueri (Rebel, 1914)
Bicyclus graueri (male, upper and underside)
Bicyclus graueri (female, upperside)
Bicyclus graueri (female, underside)
Saussurei species group. This species group has 11 described species. Only one species has been recorded at Semuliki: B. dentata. Only one individual was ever observed and this image captured.
Bicyclus dentata (Sharpe, 1898)
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Bicyclus dentata (male, underside)
Safitza species group. This species group has three described species. Only one species has been recorded at Semuliki: Bicyclus safitza, which is one of the more regularly trapped Bicyclus species. This species shows seasonal polyphenism in wing pattern (eyespot sizes) between dry and wet season forms.
Bicyclus safitza safitza (Westwood, 1850)
Bicyclus safitza (males and female, underside - dry season form)
Bicyclus safitza (males and female, uppersides)
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Bicyclus safitza (male and female, underside - wet season form)
Bicyclus safitza (miniature male, trapped during dry season)
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Bicyclus safitza (underside - seasonal forms)
Bicyclus safitza (underside, seasonal form)
Funebris species group. There is only one species described in this group and like B. safitza, B. funebris displays seasonal plasticity in wing pattern, principally eyespot size.
Bicyclus funebris (Guérin-Méneville, 1844)
Bicyclus funebris (male, under and upperside - dry season form)
Bicyclus funebris (male, under and upperside - wet season form)
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Bicyclus funebris (female,under and upperside - dry season form)
Bicyclus funebris (female,under and upperside - dry season form)
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Bicyclus funebris (female, under and upperside - wet season form)
Bicyclus funebris (female, underside - wet season form)
Bicyclus funebris (female, upperside - wet season form)
Rhacotis species group. There are seven described species in this group with at least two officially recorded at Semuliki but most likely three: B sambulos, B mesogena and B. mesogenina. Both B. mesogena and B.mesogenina are sympatric over the Congo Basin region (and in Kibale National Park, a submontane forest around 40km south-east of Semuliki in Uganda) with differences in both forewing and andocronial brush shape and also genitalia. B. mesogena or mesogenina was one of the more common Bicyclus species and was regularly trapped.
Bicyclus sambulos sambulos (Hewitson, 1877)
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Bicyclus sambulos (male, under and upperside)
Bicyclus sambulos (female, underside)
Bicyclus sambulos (female, upperside)
Bicyclus mesogena mesogena (Karsch, 1894)/ B. mesogena ugandae (Riley, 1926)
The subspecies B. mesogena ugandae is identified largely by its greater size and reduced ocelli, and examples of both described subspecies are shown. However as noted by Condamin (1963) and having observed specimens from the Ducarme collection (Ituri and Semliki Valley), where both 'subspecies' were recorded, these traits appear poorly defined and this population may just represent a cline.
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Bicyclus mesogena (male, under and upperside)
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Bicyclus mesogena (female, under and upperside)
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Bicyclus mesogena (undersides - reduced ocelli, B. mesogena ugandae subspecies). The red dot (first specimen) was a marker to prevent duplicate counting of specimens in successive sampling day trapping.
Bicyclus mesogenina (Grünberg, 1912)
Bicyclus mesogenina (waiting on field image)
Angulosa species group. There are 12 described species in this group with five species recorded at Semuliki: Bicyclus collinsi, B. auricruda, B. campa, B. mollitia and B. angulosa. In comparison to the abundant B. buea and B. vulgaris, none of these species can be regarded as abundant.
Bicyclus collinsi (Aduse-Poku, Lees and Wahlberg, 2016)
Bicyclus collinsi (male, under and upperside)
Bicyclus collinsi (female, upperside)
Bicyclus collinsi (female, underside)
Bicyclus auricruda fulgida (Fox, 1963)
Bicyclus auricruda (male, under and upperside)
Bicyclus auricruda (female, underside)
Bicyclus auricruda (female, upperside)
Bicyclus campa (Karsch, 1893)
Bicyclus campa (male, underside - dry season form)
Bicyclus campa (female under and upperside - dry season form)
Bicyclus mollitia (Karsch, 1895)
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Bicyclus mollitia (males, under and uppersides)
Bicyclus mollitia (female, under and upperside)
Bicyclus mollitia (female, underside)
Bicyclus mollitia (female, upperside)
Bicyclus angulosa angulosa (Butler, 1868)
Bicyclus angulosa (male and female undersides)
Martius species group. From the 14 described species in this group, five species have been recorded at Semuliki: B buea, B. sanaos, B. smithi, B. golo and B. sophrosyne. Females of some of these species are almost impossible to identify in the field (buea and sanaos: smithi, golo and sophrosyne). In this instance an image of a female that could either be for example sanaos or buea, even if it may be ambiguous will be displayed. This is one of the groups identified by the work of Aduse-Poku et al., (2017) that requires a revision.
Bicyclus buea (Strand, 1912)
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Bicyclus buea (male, under and upperside)
Bicyclus buea (possible female, under and upperside)
Females of Bicyclus buea and B. sanaos (species below) are impossible to identify in the field as consistent identification traits have yet to be identified and described. Examples of females of these species are tentatively labelled but just to show a possible female example of the species.
Bicyclus sanaos (Hewitson, 1866)
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Bicyclus sanaos (male, under and upperside)
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Bicyclus sanaos (possible female, upper and underside)
Bicyclus smithi smithi (Aurivillius, 1898)
Bicyclus smithi (male, under and upperside)
Bicyclus smithi (possible female, underside)
Bicyclus smithi (possible female, upperside)
Females of Bicyclus smithi as well as B. sophrosyne and B. golo (species below) are impossible to identify in the field as consistent identification traits have yet to be identified and described. Examples of females of these species are tentatively labelled but just to show a possible female example of the species.
Bicyclus golo (Aurivillius, 1893)
Bicyclus golo (male, under and upperside)
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Bicyclus golo (possible female, underside)
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Bicyclus golo (possible female, upperside)
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Bicyclus golo (possible female, under and upperside, colour variation)
Bicyclus sophrosyne (Plötz, 1880)
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Bicyclus sophrosyne (male, under and upperside)
Dorothea species group. There are five described species in this group, four species have been recorded at Semuliki: Bicyclus sandace, B. jefferyi, B. moyses and B. vulgaris. Included within this species group is the dorothea-complex containing three morphologically and genetically similar species: Bicyclus jefferyi, B. moyses and B. dorothea (the latter having been recorded within the Ituri Forest). B. jefferyi has more of an eastern distribution, ranging into Kenya. B. jefferyi was most commonly trapped along with B. safitza within the grassland patch.
Bicyclus moyses (Condami and Fox, 1964)
Bicyclus moyses (male, underside)
Bicyclus moyses (female, underside)
Bicyclus jefferyi (Fox, 1963)
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Bicyclus jefferyi (male, upper and underside)
Bicyclus jefferyi (female, underside)
Bicyclus jefferyi (female, upperside)
Females of Bicyclus jefferyi, B. vulgaris and B. sandace are impossible to identify in the field as consistent identification traits have yet to be identified and described (female examples have been provided of specimens of possibly either B. jefferyi, B vulgaris and B. sandace)
Bicyclus vulgaris (Butler, 1868)
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Bicyclus vulgaris (male, underside)
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Bicyclus vulgaris (female, underside)
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Bicyclus vulgaris (female, upperside)
Bicyclus sandace (Hewitson, 1877)
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Bicyclus sandace (male, under and upperside)
Bicyclus sandace (female, underside)
Ena species group. There are four described species in this group, with only one recorded from Semuliki: Bicyclus campina. This is a highly variable species.
Bicyclus campina campina (Aurivillius, 1901)
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Bicyclus campina (male, under and upperside)
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Bicyclus campina (female, under and upperside)
Bicyclus campina (male and female, undersides - dry season form)
Genus references and bibliography
Aduse‐Poku, K., Brakefield, P.M., Wahlberg, N. & Brattström, O., (2016). Supplemental data S5: Systematic checklist (with complete synonymic listing) of currently known Bicyclus species.
Aduse‐Poku, K., Brakefield, P.M., Wahlberg, N. & Brattström, O., (2017). Expanded molecular phylogeny of the genus Bicyclus (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) shows the importance of increased sampling for detecting semi-cryptic species and highlights potentials for future studies. Systematics and Biodiversity, 15(2), 115-130.
Brakefield, P.M. & Reitsma, N. (1991). Phenotypic plasticity, seasonal climate and the population biology of Bicyclus butterflies (Satyridae) in Malawi. Ecological Entomology 16, 291-303.
Brattström, O., Aduse‐Poku, K., Collins, S.C. & Brakefield, P.M., (2015). Revision of the Bicyclus ignobilis species‐group (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Satyrinae) with descriptions of two new species. Zootaxa 4018, 57‐79.
Brattström, O., Aduse‐Poku, K., Collins, S.C., Di Micco De Santo, T. & Brakefield, P.M., (2016). Revision of the Bicyclus sciathis species group (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) with descriptions of four new species and corrected distributional records. Systematic Entomology 41, 207‐228.
Condamin, M., (1973). Monographie du Genre Bicyclus (Lepidoptera, Satyridae). L’Institut Fondamental D’Afrique Noire, Dakar. To date the most comprehensive resource covering this genus, unfortunately, all images are in black and white.
Dongmo, M.A.K, Bonebrake, T.C., Hanna, R. & Fomena, A. (2018). Seasonal polyphenism in Bicyclus dorothea (Lepidoptera:
Nymphalidae) across different habitats in Cameroon. Environmental Entomology, 47(6), 1601–1608.
Nymphalidae.Net provides a detailed taxonomic overview of the Subtribe Mycalesina. Subtribe Mycalesina (Wahlberg, N).
Williams, M.C., (2020). Genus Bicyclus. A section of Afrotropical Butterflies (17th Edition). Publication is available from Lepidopterists' Society of Africa website https://www.lepsocafrica.org/?p=publications&s=atb.