INFORMATIONS DETAILLEES SUR LA DESCRIPTION ET SUR SA CLASSIFICATION
Description
cynthius
Auteur
Drury
Date
1782
Décrit comme
Acraea cynthius
Lieu du Type
London (Eltringham, 1912)
Localité Type
Sierra Leone
Référence
Ill. Exot. Ins., 3: 52, pl. 37, fig. 5, 6
Titre de la Source
Illustrations of Natural History, London
Publication
Illustrations of Natural History, London.
Classification proposée aujourd'hui
Classé comme
Synonym
Espèce
bonasia
Sous-espèce
bonasia
Sous-genre
Acraea (Actinote)
Clade
I5c
Groupe
bonasia
Observations et histoire de la classification de la description
Drury himself accepts the change of cynthius to cynthia (Drury’s 1837 edition). Butler, in 1869, conflates cynthius Drury, bonasia Fabricius and eponina Cramer, and it is not clear whether he properly distinguishes between the two species, as he states that bonasia is merely a variety of serena Fabricius. Classified as a valid species by Aurivillius (1893) for Cameroon, where it is sympatric with bonasia. Oberthür (1893) takes care to note that the illustration published by Drury, depicting the underside of the species, does not correspond to what most authors refer to as cynthius. He highlights the confusing synonymy proposed by Trimen (1862–66) between cynthius and figures A and B in Cramer’s work. Oberthür does not give a definitive verdict, but expresses doubts regarding the identification of this taxon. Butler (1895), in an article specifically devoted to the problem posed by cynthius, asserts that this taxon is merely an albino female of bonasia. He adds that the taxon which most authors had in fact mistakenly called cynthius must therefore be named and he chooses oberthüri. Jones, in his Icones (1787), depicted a cyntheus (pl. 36) which appears to be a female of b ... Voir Texte complet
