19-12-2022 BRUFUT FOREST, GAMBIA - GUINEAFOWL BUTTERFLY (Hamanumida daedalus)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/68418-Hamanumida-daedalus

27-5-2019 SOMALISA CAMP, ZIMBABWE - GUINEAFOWL BUTTERFLY (Hamanumida daedalus)

The genus Hamanumida comprises of a single species – daedalus, which is popularly known as the Guineafowl due to its colour and pattern which resembles that of the guineafowl bird.

Hamanumida daedalus is widespread across Africa including Madagascar. It also occurs in the Arab states.

This is a grassland / savannah species found at altitudes between sea level and about 800m. It is associated mainly with dry, rocky grassland where there are scattered bushes and trees, but also rapidly colonises abandoned agricultural land.

The primary larval foodplant is Combretum, but Terminalia and Tectona (teak) are also used.

The butterflies are normally seen singly or in two’s and three’s. Males will mud-puddle at the edges of fords and small streams, but both sexes are more commonly seen aggregating at the top of hills where courtship and copulation take place. They fly very low over the ground, and frequently settle to bask on bare ground or on rocks or boulders. At all times they remain very alert, taking flight at the slightest disturbance.

Hamanumida daedalus, the guineafowl butterfly, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae and only member of the genus Hamanumida.

It is found in the Afrotropical realm (Natal, Eswatini, Transvaal, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, tropical Africa (dry lowland areas) and southwest Arabia).

The wingspan is 55–65 mm for males and 60–78 mm for females. Adults are on wing year-round, with peaks in midwinter and summer.

The larvae feed on Combretum and Terminalia species.

20-5-2019 BUMI HILLS, ZIMBABWE - GUINEAFOWL BUTTERFLY (Hamanumida daedalus)

The genus Hamanumida comprises of a single species – daedalus, which is popularly known as the Guineafowl due to its colour and pattern which resembles that of the guineafowl bird.

Hamanumida daedalus is widespread across Africa including Madagascar. It also occurs in the Arab states.

This is a grassland / savannah species found at altitudes between sea level and about 800m. It is associated mainly with dry, rocky grassland where there are scattered bushes and trees, but also rapidly colonises abandoned agricultural land.

The primary larval foodplant is Combretum, but Terminalia and Tectona (teak) are also used.

The butterflies are normally seen singly or in two’s and three’s. Males will mud-puddle at the edges of fords and small streams, but both sexes are more commonly seen aggregating at the top of hills where courtship and copulation take place. They fly very low over the ground, and frequently settle to bask on bare ground or on rocks or boulders. At all times they remain very alert, taking flight at the slightest disturbance.

Hamanumida daedalus, the guineafowl butterfly, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae and only member of the genus Hamanumida.

Range

It is found in the Afrotropical realm (Natal, Eswatini, Transvaal, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, tropical Africa (dry lowland areas) and southwest Arabia).

Description

The wingspan is 55–65 mm for males and 60–78 mm for females. Adults are on wing year-round, with peaks in midwinter and summer.

Food plants

The larvae feed on Combretum and Terminalia species.

3-6-2019 LINYANTI CAMP, BOTSWANA - GUINEAFOWL BUTTERFLY (Hamanumida daedalus)

The genus Hamanumida comprises of a single species – daedalus, which is popularly known as the Guineafowl due to its colour and pattern which resembles that of the guineafowl bird.

Hamanumida daedalus is widespread across Africa including Madagascar. It also occurs in the Arab states.

This is a grassland / savannah species found at altitudes between sea level and about 800m. It is associated mainly with dry, rocky grassland where there are scattered bushes and trees, but also rapidly colonises abandoned agricultural land.

The primary larval foodplant is Combretum, but Terminalia and Tectona (teak) are also used.

The butterflies are normally seen singly or in two’s and three’s. Males will mud-puddle at the edges of fords and small streams, but both sexes are more commonly seen aggregating at the top of hills where courtship and copulation take place. They fly very low over the ground, and frequently settle to bask on bare ground or on rocks or boulders. At all times they remain very alert, taking flight at the slightest disturbance.