Papilio neyi (Niepelt, 1909)

Rio Napo, 45 Mi NW of Iquitos, Peru  Nov 1996 Rio Napo, 45 Mi NW of Iquitos, Peru  Nov 1996  verso
Rondonia Brasil  Aberrant??  Rio Motura 150 meters, Amapa Brasil Sept 1967 ssp bedoci

    Very rare but apparently much more widely distributed than formerly thought. Described from, and for many years felt to be confined to Ecuador, specimens have shown up in such disparate places as SW Brazil (Jaru, SE Rondonia) and Guyana. The poorly known subspecies bedoci ( 4 known specimens from south Guyana and N Amapa, Brazil) was described as a subspecies of P zagreus, but clearly belongs to neyi when one studies the banding on the wings (full band in space 1b, large and distince FW marginal spots) and the unique shape of the forewing (which is always more rounded then zagreus).
    P neyi appears to be an insect of dense primary rain forest, spending much time in the canopy, and is by far the rarest of the zagreus group at this time. Most known specimens are from Ecuador and NE Peru.
    The specimen shown was taken in Peru NW of Iquitos, where it is sympatric with P zagreus batesi. The female is undescribed due to its rarity.