Acraea (butterfly)
Acraea is a genus of brush-footed butterflies (family Nymphalidae) of the subfamily Heliconiinae. It seems to be highly paraphyletic and has long been used as a "wastebin taxon" to unite about 220 species of anatomically conservative Acraeini. Some phylogenetic studies show that the genus "Acraea" is monophyletic if "Bematistes" and Neotropical "Actinote" are included (see Pierre & Bernaud, 2009). Most species assembled here are restricted to the Afrotropical realm, but some are found in India, Southeast Asia, and Australia. Biology. The eggs are laid in masses; the larvae are rather short, of almost equal thickness throughout, and possessing  branched spines on each segment, young larvae group together on a protecting mass of silk; the pupa is slender, with a long abdomen, rather wide and angulated about the insertion of the wings, and suspended by the tail only. "A. horta", "A. cabira", and "A. terpsicore" illustrate typical life histories. The food plants of "Acraea" caterpillars are usually Urticaceae or, like in most Heliconiinae, Passifloraceae. Some feed on other plants, such as Fabaceae, "Flacourtiaceae", or Violaceae. Their preferred species contain cyanogenic glycosides, which make the larvae and adults poisonous to predators. The aposematic coloration of the adults announces this, and  some species are mimicked by less noxious butterflies. At least some ""Acraea"" are able to produce the toxins themselves. Their flight is slow and flapping. Systematics and taxonomy. That all these species were properly placed in "Acraea" has never been generally accepted. In 1807, Johan Christian Fabricius established the genus for the garden acraea, described as "Papilio horta" by Carl Linnaeus in 1764, and its relatives. By and by, an increasing number of species were placed here. As early as 1848, and again in 1887 and the early 1990s, it was attempted to divide the genus into groups of closest  relatives, as it was suspected that some ""Acraea"" might actually be closer to other genera in the tribe Acraeini. With increasing availability of DNA sequence data, it is confirmed that "Acraea" as loosely defined does not constitute a monophyletic group. Even before the attempts to split up "Acraea" in earnest had begun, Jacob Hübner in 1819 suggested to separate species around "Acraea serena" as "Telchinia". This name has been applied to a generally African group whose members usually feed on Urticaceae, and they had already been noted to bear some uncanny resemblances to the American "Actinote" in anatomical details. Indeed , they seem to be closer relatives of these than of the other butterflies placed in "Acraea", which usually feed on Passifloraceae and are at least in part quite close relatives of the African genus "Bematistes". Those closest to that genus might warrant separation as "Rubraea" or "Stephenia". But while several informal species groups have been established, it is not clear which of these are monophyletic and how to split the apparently still paraphyletic genus further. The placement of the garden acraea—the type species—and hence which of the any further subdivisions will get to bear the name "Acraea", remains  unresolved. As it is traditionally included in the former "A. terpsicore" group (now "A. serena" group) and its caterpillars, while polyphagous, do not feed on Urticaceae, it may be that the separation of "Telchinia" is unwarranted and other proposed genera might be resurrected instead. There was one major misidentification which still causes confusion today. "Acraea terpsicore", described as "Papilio terpsicore" by Linnaeus in 1758, was held to be the senior synonym of "A. serena", described by Fabricius as "Papilio serena" in 1775. Hence, the former name was commonly used for that African species. But as it turned out, Linnaeus had  actually described an Indian species—the well-known tawny coaster. Fabricius in 1793 believed it was new to science and described it again, as "Papilio violae". Consequently, it had been long known as "A. violae". It was also recognized that Fabricius' little-studied "P. serena" was none other than the orange acraea. For this, the name "A. eponina", from the "Papilio eponina" established in the 1780 issue of Pieter Cramer's "De uitlandsche Kapellen", had been used all the time. Another instance of the confusion rife in this genus is exemplified by Boisduval's "Acraea manjaca". These developments come from  two papers written by J. Pierre and D. Bernaud. Species. Since the proposed phylogenetic sequence of the species groups is almost certainly incorrect for a large part, the groups are simply listed alphabetically. J. Pierre & D. Bernaud have published a complete systematic and synonymic list. "Acraea acrita" species group "Acraea andromacha" species group (close to part of "A. terpsicore" group?) "Acraea anemosa" species group "Acraea aureola" species group "Acraea bonasia" species group (close to "A. oberthuri" and "A. rahira" groups? Paraphyletic?) "Acraea caecilia" species group (close to "A. cepheus" and "A. egina" groups?) "Acraea cepheus" species group (close to "A.  caecilia" and "A. egina" groups?) "Acraea circeis" species group (close to "A. masamba") "Acraea egina" species group (close to "A. caecilia" and "A. cepheus" groups?) "Acraea encedon" species group (close to "A. jodutta" and "A. pharsalus" groups?) – common acraea or white-barred acraea or encedon acraea "Acraea issoria" species group (a rather distinct lineage?) "Acraea jodutta" species group (close to "A. encedon" and "A. pharsalus" groups?) "Acraea masamba" species group (close to "A. circeis"?) "Acraea oberthuri" species group (close to "A. bonasia" group?) "Acraea pentapolis" species group (close to "A. circeis" and "A. masamba" groups?) "Acraea pharsalus" species group (close  to "A. encedon" and "A. jodhutta" groups?) "Acraea rahira" species group (close to "A. bonasia" group?) "Acraea satis" species group "A. terpsicore" group "Acraea terpsicore" species group (formerly "A. violae" group) "Acraea zetes" species group (might include part of "A. serena" group; a very distinct lineage?) Species group undetermined Some other species formerly in "Acraea" have now been definitely assigned to other genera, e.g. "Bematistes".