Mylothris kilimensis kilimensis ( Kielland, 1990 )

Liseki, Steven D. & Vane-Wright, Richard I., 2014, Butterflies (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea) of Mount Kilimanjaro: family Pieridae, subfamily Pierinae, Journal of Natural History 48 (25 - 26), pp. 1543-1583 : 1574-1575

Mylothris kilimensis kilimensis ( Kielland, 1990)

Kielland 1990: 271 (2 figs); figs 35, 45 (genitalia). D’ Abrera 1980: 102 (1 fig., as male M. yulei yulei ). d’ Abrera 1997: 121 (1 fig., as male M. yulei yulei , misidentification). SI: Figures 36a–d.

Forewing length: male 22.5–29 mm (mean (n = 18) 26.38 mm, SD = 1.327); female 21.5–29 mm (mean (n = 7) 25.86 mm, SD = 1.856). Note these data are all drawn from old BMNH specimens from Kilimanjaro and Taveta ; in some contrast, Kielland (1990, p.67) gave male 22–27 mm (mean 24 mm), female 22.5–27.8 mm (mean 26 mm).

Note: Jan Kielland (1990) recognized that the relatively widespread species Mylothris yulei Butler , originally described from a male from the Songwe area in northern Malawi ( Butler 1897, p.853, pl. 43, fig.2) and a female from Kilimanjaro, was based on a mixed (syntypic) series. He resolved this by designating the male, from “Songwe Plain”, as lectotype of M. yulei , and included the female syntype of yulei within the type material of a new species, M. kilimensis ( Kielland 1990, p.67; type locality Amani, East Usambara Mts).

Records. Occurs in submontane and montane forest in far southern Kenya (Taveta), and northeastern and eastern–central Tanzania. In Tanzania the nominate subspecies occurs at altitudes of 900–2000 m; it has a weak flight, and floats around trees and shrubs ( Kielland 1990, p.67). Recorded by Kielland (loc. cit.) from Mt Kilimanjaro, North and South Pare Mts, the Usambaras, Nguu and Nguru Mts, Mt Kwaraha, Mbulu forests and Mt Meru. Liseki (2009) did not record this butterfly from Kilimanjaro. Found on the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro by Hannington, at New and Old Moshi by Selous, and on W. Kilimanjaro at 4500–5000 ft by Cooper (material in BMNH). As M. yulei, Rogers (1908, p.537) noted four females from Kilimanjaro collected 5–16 January 1906, and Aurivillius (1910a, p.11) recorded it from the agricultural zone around Kibongoto. There are several specimens from Kilimanjaro in OUMNH, including some from Mamba – a small village close to Marangu, just below the national park border. On Kilimanjaro this appears to be a lower slopes insect. Possibly it does just enter the lower margin of the main forest zone, at around 1800 m, but we have no direct evidence of that.

Variation is relatively slight, most notably in the precise extent of the yellow flushing to the base of the wings. The only other race recognized occurs on the Rondo Plateau, southeastern Tanzania.