Parnassius

Taxobox
name = "Parnassius"

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image_width = 240px
image_caption = "Parnassius phoebus"
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Arthropoda
classis = Insecta
ordo = Lepidoptera
familia = Papilionidae
subfamilia = Parnassiinae
genus = "Parnassius"
subdivision_ranks = Species
subdivision = "Parnassius acco" "Parnassius acdestis" "Parnassius actius" "Parnassius apollo" "Parnassius apollonius "Parnassius ariadne" "Parnassius arcticus" "Parnassius autocrator" "Parnassius baileyi" "Parnassius boëdromius" "Parnassius bremeri" "Parnassius cardinal" "Parnassius cephalus" "Parnassius charltonius" "Parnassius clodius" "Parnassius delphius" "Parnassius dongalaicus" "Parnassius epaphus" "Parnassius eversmanni" "Parnassius felderi"
"Parnassius hardwickii"
"Parnassius honrathi" "Parnassius glacialis" "Parnassius hide" "Parnassius huberi" "Parnassius hunnyngtoni" "Parnassius hunza" "Parnassius imperator" "Parnassius inopinatus" "Parnassius jacobsoni" "Parnassius jacquemontii" "Parnassius kiritshenkoi" "Parnassius labeyriei" "Parnassius loxias" "Parnassius maharaja" "Parnassius maximinus" "Parnassius mnemosyne" "Parnassius nadadevinensis" "Parnassius nomion" "Parnassius nordmanni" "Parnassius nosei" "Parnassius orleans" "Parnassius patricius" "Parnassius phoebus" "Parnassius przewalskii" "Parnassius széchenyii" "Parnassius schultei" "Parnassius simo" "Parnassius simonius" "Parnassius staudingeri" "Parnassius stenosemus" "Parnassius stoliczkanus" "Parnassius tianschianicus" "Parnassius stubbendorfi" "Parnassius tenedius"

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"Parnassius" is a genus of northern circumpolar and montane (alpine and Himalayan) butterflies usually known as "Apollos". They can vary in colour and form significantly based on their altitude. They also show an adaptation to high altitudes called altitudinal melanism. They show dark bodies and darkened colouration at the wingbase which helps them warm faster using the sun.

Although classified under the Swallowtail butterfly family, none of the "Parnassius" species possess tails.

The larvae feed on species of plants belonging to the Papaveraceae and Crassulaceae families, and like the other swallowtail butterfly larvae, possess an osmeterium. [Katoh T, Chichvarkhin A, Yagi T,Omoto K. 2005 Phylogeny and evolution of butterflies of the genus Parnassius: inferences from mitochondrial 16S and ND1 sequences. Zoolog Sci.22(3):343-51 [http://eprints.lib.hokudai.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/2115/14485/1/ZS_22_343.pdf PDF] ] Unlike most butterflies that have exposed pupae, they pupate inside a loose silken cocoon.

Identification and ecology

Clade | style=font-size:75%;line-height:75% | label1=Parnassinae | 1=Clade | label1=Parnassiini | 1=Clade | 1="Hypermnestra" | 2="Parnassius" | label2=Luehdorfiini | 2=Clade | 1=Clade | 1="Archon" | 2= "Doritites bosniackii" | 2="Luehdorfia" | label3=Zerythiini | 3=Clade | 1="Sericinus" | 2=Clade | 1="Bhutanitis" | 2=Clade | 1= "Zerynthia" | 2= "Allancastria" |4= ? "Thaites" A proposed phylogeny of the "Parnassius" and related groups. [Nazari, V., Zakharov, E.V., and Sperling, F.A.H., 2007. Phylogeny, historical biogeography, and taxonomic ranking of Parnassiinae (Lepidoptera, Papilionidae) based on morphology and seven genes. Molecular phylogenetics and Evolution, 42: 131-156. [http://www.uoguelph.ca/~vnazari/Nazari_et_al_2006_MP_E.pdf pdf] ] The "Parnassius" species of butterflies are often hard to identify and can sometimes only be identified by dissection of the genitalia. The phylogeny of the group is still under study using molecular techniques. The exact number of species within the genus is disputed and numbers range from 38 to 47. [Nazari, Vazrick. 2006. Parnassius Latreille, 1804. Version 07 July 2006 (under construction). [http://tolweb.org/Parnassius/65393/2006.07.07] in The Tree of Life Web Project, [http://tolweb.org/] ]

The "Parnassius" butterflies also have a peculiar reproductive strategy in that the male has special accessory glands that produce a mating plug or "sphragis" that seals the female genitalia after mating. This is believed to ensure the success of the male and to prevent other males from mating and avoids sperm competition. [Ehrlich, A. H. and P. R. Ehrlich. 1978. Reproductive strategies in the butterflies: I. Mating frequency, plugging, and egg number. J. Kansas Entomol. Soc. 51: 666-697. ]

Butterflies of this genus have been widely used models to study metapopulations, population genetics and gene flow. Their patchy distribution and restricted migration makes them vulnerable to the effects of genetic drift and considerable colour variations can exist in individuals from different regions. [Dechaine,Eric G. , Andrew P. Martin. 2004. Historic Cycles Of Fragmentation And Expansion In "Parnassius smintheus" (Papilionidae) Inferred Using Mitochondrial DNA. Evolution, 58(1):113–127] [Keyghobadi, N., Roland, J. and Strobeck, C. 1999. Influence of landscape on the population genetic structure of the alpine butterfly "Parnassius smintheus" (Papilionidae). Molecular Ecology 8: 1481–1495.]

ynonymy

Eight subgenera are recognized within the genus.
*"Driopa" Korshunov, 1988. Type species: "Papilio mnemosyne" Linnaeus, 1758.
*"Sachaia" Korshunov, 1988. Type species: "Parnassius tenedius" Eversmann, 1851.
*"Parnassius" Latreille, 1804; "Nouv. Dict. Hist. nat". 24 (6): 185, 199, Type Species: "Papilio apollo" Linnaeus.
*"Tadumia" Moore, [1902] ; "Lepidoptera Indica", 5 (53): 116, Type Species: "Papilio acco" Gray
*"Kailasius" Moore, [1902] ; "Lepidoptera Indica", 5 (53): 118, Type Species: "Parnassius charltonius" Gray
*"Koramius" Moore, [1902] ; "Lepidoptera Indica", 5 (53): 120, Type Species: "Parnassius delphius" Eversmann
*"Lingamius" Bryk, 1935; "Das Tierreich" 65: 538-540, Type Species: "Parnassius hardwickii" Gray
*"Eukoramius" Bryk, 1935; "Das Tierreich" 65: 630, 673-674, Type Species: "Parnassius imperator" OberthürOther names that are no longer valid include
*"Parnassis" Hübner, [1819] ; "Verz. bekannter Schmett". (6): 90 (or missp. or emend.?), Type Species: "Papilio apollo" Linnaeus
*"Therius" Billberg, 1820; "Enum. Ins. Mus. Billb".: 75, Type Species: "Papilio apollo" Linnaeus
*"Doritis" Fabricius, 1807; "Magazin f. Insektenk". (Illiger) 6: 283, Type Species: "Papilio apollo" Linnaeus

Important Collections

*National Museum of Natural History Leiden, (Rijksmuseum van Natuurlijke Historie) Curt Eisner collection. Types listed in Eisner, C. "Parnassiidae-Typen in der Sammlung J.C.Eisner". Leiden. E.J.Brill, 1966. 190 pp. Col.frontispiece & 84 plts.(Zool.Verh. RMNH, 81). Review of worldwide species of Parnassiidae, 719 taxa included.

*Natural History Museum Specimens largely determined by Curt Eisner Types listed in Ackery, P. R. (1973): A list of the type-specimens of Parnassius (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) in the British Museum (Natural History). "Bull. Br. Mus. nat. Hist. (Ent.)" 29 (1) (9.XI.1973): 1—35, 1 pl.

*Ulster Museum Belfast. H.M Peebles collection Type list available on CD (Nash, R and Eisner, C.)

*Muséum national d'histoire naturelle , Paris.Types listed by Bernardi, G., and Viette, P. 1966. Les types et typoides de Parnassius (s.l.) se trouvant au Museum de Paris. "Bull.Soc. ent. Fr." 71 95-103, 163-166. 9 229-233, 304-309.

Gallery

References

External links

* [http://www.geocities.com/tgorw_sm/paindex.htm?20079 Parnassius of the World]
* [http://www.geocities.com/tgorw_sm/link.htm Göran Waldeck Links Page]
* [http://tolweb.org/Parnassiinae Tree of Life]
* [http://www.em.ipw.agrl.ethz.ch/index.php?section=entcollection&subs=types Type specimens at ETH]
* [http://www.pteron-world.com/topics/classfication/papilionidae/parnassiini2.html#parnassius Images with text in Japanese.]
* [http://www.insects-online.de/frames/papilio.htm GloBIS/Gart Checklist]
* [http://www.yellowman.cn/fenlei/linchi/Parnassiidae.htm Checklist of Parnassius of China] ]