Magnificent Swallowtail

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

 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.