Butterflies of Africa
Hewitson's Acraea
Acraea alciope
HEWITSON, 1852
Family - NYMPHALIDAE
subfamily - ACRAEINAE
Tribe - ACRAEINI
Acraea alciope male, Bunso, Ghana
© Adrian Hoskins
Introduction
There are 228 Acraea
species, of which 223 are Afrotropical in distribution. The majority
are found in the forests and savannahs of East Africa, while about
60 are found in West Africa. Beyond Africa a further 5 species occur
in the Oriental region, and another is found in Australia / New
Guinea. In the neotropical region there are 50 additional species,
but these are normally placed in the genera
Actinote, Altinote and
Abananote due to differences in
venation and genitalia.
All
Acraea species have elongate forewings
and rounded hindwings. The wings are thinly scaled and in many
species are semi-transparent. The scales wear off very easily so
that insects more than 4 or 5 days old have a glassy or greasy
appearance. The majority of species have a predominantly brownish or
greyish ground colour, marked with bands or patches of red or
orange. The basal area of the underside hindwings of most species is
marked with a pattern of small black spots.
Acraea alciope is a
common and widespread species found across the forested belt from
Sierra Leone to western Uganda.
Habitats
This species is found in primary and degraded forest, typically
being found in forest edge habitats, e.g. in glades or along logging
roads, and can also be found in cocoa plantations.
Acraea alciope male, Likpe Hills, Ghana
© Adrian Hoskins
Acraea alciope
female, Bunso, Ghana
© Adrian Hoskins
Lifecycle
The
larval foodplant is Musanga (
Urticaceae ).
Acraea alciope female, Likpe Hills, Ghana
© Adrian Hoskins
Adult behaviour
The
distinctive yellow-banded males establish territories at track
intersections where they await passing females, which they intercept
in flight and force to the ground. Once copulated the pair take
flight, with the male dangling from the abdomen of the larger more
powerful female. They quickly settle on the foliage of a nearby tree
or bush, where they remain
copulated
for 2 or 3 hours.
Both
sexes commonly nectar at wild flowers, strongly favouring
Eupatorium odorata.
Acraea alciope female, Amedzofe, Ghana
© Adrian Hoskins
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