Papilio garamas
# Papilio garamas

Papilio garamas, commonly known as the magnificent swallowtail, is a species of Neotropical swallowtail butterfly found in Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama and Costa Rica.

## Description

A large butterfly with a wingspan of 80 to 110 millimetres. The females are dimorphic, either resembling the male or dark forms lacking the cream median and postdiscal bands contrasting with deep black ground colour.

## Subspecies

* Papilio garamas garamas Geyer, 1829 (central Mexico)
* Papilio garamas tapatio De la Maza, 2023 (western Mexico)
* Papilio garamas abderus Hopffer, 1856 (eastern Mexico) generally seen as conspecific with P. garamas but sometimes treated as a distinct species (Collins & Morris 1985:87, Hancock 1983, Llorente-Bousquets et al. 1997).
* Papilio garamas electryon Bates, 1864 (Guatemala to Honduras) may be placed in abderus
* Papilio garamas syedra Godman & Salvin, 1878 (Panama, Costa Rica) may be placed in abderus
* Papilio garamas baroni Rothschild & Jordan, 1906 (southwestern Mexico) may be placed in abderus

## Taxonomy

Papilio garamas is a member of the homerus species group. The members of this clade are:

* Papilio cacicus Lucas, 1852
* Papilio euterpinus Salvin & Godman, 1868
* Papilio garamas (Geyer, [1829])
* Papilio homerus Fabricius, 1793
* Papilio menatius (Hübner, [1819])
* Papilio warscewiczii Hopffer, 1865

Papilio garamas is in the subgenus Pterourus Scopoli, 1777 which also includes the species groups: troilus species group, glaucus species group, the zagreus species group and the scamander species group.

## Status

Not uncommon and not regarded as threatened. If the garamas subspecies other than garamas garamas are subspecies of abderus then garamas is a Mexican endemic, but a taxonomic clarification is required.

## Etymology

Garamas was the son of Acacallis (Greek: Ἀκακαλλίς) in Greek mythology.

