Belenois aurota aurota (Fabricius, 1793)

Liseki, Steven D. & Vane-Wright, Richard I., 2014, Butterflies (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea) of Mount Kilimanjaro: family Pieridae, subfamily Pierinae, Journal of Natural History 48 (25 - 26), pp. 1543-1583 : 1565-1566

Belenois aurota aurota (Fabricius, 1793)

Larsen 1996: pl. 8, figs 73 i–iii. d’ Abrera 1997: 91 (4 figs). SI: Figure 26e–j.

Forewing length: male 23–28.5 mm (mean (n = 6) 26.27 mm, SD = 1.679); female 23.5–28.5 mm (mean (n = 7) 25.97 mm, SD = 1.552).

This species (together with the two following: e.g. Talbot 1943a) has often been placed in the genus Anaphaeis , and in the past was also known by the older species name Papilio mesentina Cramer, 1780 – which is invalid, due to primary homonymy.

Records. All kinds of habitat from sea level to high mountains (2600 m) throughout Tanzania ( Kielland 1990, p.60). Kielland (1990) did not give specific records but Liseki (2009) encountered B. aurota commonly on Mount Kilimanjaro throughout the year, at 2000–3000 m. The BMNH collection includes three males and three females from W. Kilimanjaro collected, at 3000–4500 ft, by B. Cooper. Williams (1930, p.159, as B. mesentina ) recorded this species migrating in vast numbers at Moshi in February 1926. Beyond Tanzania this subspecies is found throughout much of Africa ( Ackery et al. 1995, p.199), and in Arabia, Egypt, the Middle East and India (the type locality is peninsula India). Two peripheral races are considered to occur in Asia.

Males are relatively constant, with white ground colour. Females vary notably in the intensity of their dark markings, especially the wing borders, which can include submarginal pale spots or streaks, but are most often broad and almost entirely infuscated. Female ground colour varies from off-white to yellowish (very rarely bright yellow).