Acraea (genus)
| Acraea | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Adult male fiery acraea (A. acrita) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Nymphalidae |
| Subfamily: | Heliconiinae |
| Tribe: | Acraeini |
| Genus: |
Acraea Fabricius, 1807 |
| Type species | |
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Papilio horta (Linnaeus, 1764) |
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| Species | |
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Presently about 220, see text |
|
| Synonyms | |
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Presently about 220, see text
Alacria Henning, 1992
Aphanopeltis Mabille, 1887
Auracraea Henning, 1993
Aurora Henning, 1992 (non Ragonot 1887: preoccupied)
Gnesia Doubleday, 1848
Hyalites Doubleday, 1848
Pareba Doubleday, 1848
Phanopeltis Mabille, 1887
Planema Doubleday, 1848
Rubraea Henning, 1992
Solenites Mabille, 1887
Stephenia Henning, 1992
Telchinia Hübner, 1819
(but see text)
Acraea is a genus of brush-footed butterflies (family Nymphalidae) of the subfamily Heliconiinae. It seems to be highly paraphyletic and has long been used as a "wastebin taxon" to unite about 220 species of anatomically conservative Acraeini. Some phylogenetic studies show that the genus Acraea is monophyletic if Bematistes and Neotropical Actinote are included (see Pierre & Bernaud, 2009). Most species assembled here are restricted to the Afrotropic ecozone, but some are found in India, Southeast Asia, and Australia.
The eggs are laid in masses; the larvae are rather short, of almost equal thickness throughout, and possessing branched spines on each segment, young larvae group together on a protecting mass of silk; the pupa is slender, with a long abdomen, rather wide and angulated about the insertion of the wings, and suspended by the tail only. A. horta, A. cabira, and A. terpsicore illustrate typical life histories. The food plants of Acraea caterpillars are usually Urticaceae or, like in most Heliconiinae, Passifloraceae. Some feed on other plants, such as Fabaceae, "Flacourtiaceae", or Violaceae. Their preferred species contain cyanogenic glycosides, which make the larvae and adults poisonous to predators. The aposematic coloration of the adults announces this, and some species are mimicked by less noxious butterflies. At least some "Acraea" are able to produce the toxins themselves. Their flight is slow and flapping.
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