Danaus tigers, milkweeds, monarchs, wanderers , and queens , is a genus of butterflies in the tiger butterfly tribe. They are found worldwide, including North America, South America, Africa, Asia, Indonesia and Australia. For other tigers see the genus, Parantica .
Following the review of Smith et al. (2005), 12 species are provisionally accepted based on morphological, mtDNA 12S rRNA and cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, and nuclear DNA 18S rRNA and EF1 subunit α sequence data:
Danaus affinis (Fabricius, 1775) – Malay tigerDanaus chrysippus (Linnaeus, 1758) – plain tiger, common tiger, African monarch, lesser wanderer, or African queenDanaus cleophile (Godart, 1819) – Jamaican monarchDanaus dorippus (Klug, 1845) – dorippus tiger (formerly included in D. chrysippus )Danaus eresimus (Cramer, [1777]) – soldier or tropical queen, includes D. plexaure Danaus erippus (Cramer, [1775]) – southern monarchDanaus genutia (Cramer, [1779]) – common tiger, Indian monarch, or orange tigerDanaus gilippus (Cramer, [1775]) – queenDanaus ismare (Cramer, [1780]) – Ismare tigerDanaus melanippus (Cramer, [1777]) – white tiger, common tiger, or eastern common tigerDanaus petilia (Stoll, 1790) – lesser wandererDanaus plexippus (Linnaeus, 1758) – monarch or wandererThis genus was formerly split into the subgenera Danaus , Salatura , and Anosia , but this arrangement has been abolished. While the first (the 2–3 monarch butterflies) and Salatura (species ismare, genutia, affinis , and melanippus ) do indeed seem to be clades, the relationship of these to the other species, especially the puzzling D. dorippus , is not clear.
Hybridization producing fertile offspring is known to occur between some species, confounding mtDNA data; this seems to be especially true in the case of D. dorippus (Smith et al. 2005). In addition, male-killing Spiroplasma infection has been shown in D. chrysippus and probably also occurs in other species (Jiggins et al. 2000); the consequences for speciation and evolution are probably similar to those observed in infection with male-killing strains of the better-researched Wolbachia bacteria.
Phylogeny of the genus (without D. cleophile ).
Synonyms of Danaus species and subspecies Source: The higher classification of Nymphalidae, at Nymphalidae.net
Note: Names preceded by an equal sign ( = ) are synonyms, homonyms, rejected names, or invalid names. Synonymy, given below in abbreviated form, is from Ackery & Vane-Wright (1984).
Tribe Danaini Boisduval, 1833
Danaus Danaida Latreille, 1804; = Limnas Hübner, 1806; = Danais Latreille, 1807; = Danaus Latreille, 1809; = Anosia Hübner, 1816; = Festivus Crotch, 1872; = Salatura Moore, 1880; = Nasuma Moore, 1883; = Tasitia Moore, 1883; = Danaomorpha Kremky, 1925; = Panlymnas Bryk, 1937; = Diogas d'Almeida, 1938)
Danaus cleophile (Godart, 1819) ( original name = Danais cleophile Godart, 1819)Danaus plexippus (Linnaeus, 1758) ( original name = Papilio plexippus Linnaeus, 1758; = misippiformis Meuschen, 1781; = archippus Fabricius, 1793; = menippe Hübner, 1816; = megalippe Hübner, 1826; = leucogyne Butler, 1884; = fumosus Hulstaert, 1886; = pulchra Strecker, 1900; = nigrippus Haensch, 1909; = americanus Gunder, 1927; = nivosus Gunder, 1927; = curassavicae Fabricius, 1938; = portoriciensis Clark, 1941; = tobagi Clark, 1941; = disjuncta Dufrane, 1948; = bipunctata Dufrane, 1948; = obliterata Dufrane, 1948)Danaus erippus (Cramer, 1775) ( original name = Papilio erippus Cramer, 1775 ( = larensis Köhler, 1929; = asclepiadis Fabricius, 1938)Danaus ismare (Cramer, 1780) ( original name = Papilio ismare Cramer, 1780; = ismareola Butler, 1866; = fulvus Ribbe, 1890; = celebensis Rothschild, 1892; = felicia Fruhstorfer, 1907; = goramica Fruhstorfer, 1907; = alba Morishita, 1981)Danaus genutia (Cramer, 1779) ( original name = Papilio genutia Cramer, 1779; = adnana Swinhoe, 1917; = albipars Talbot, 1943; = alexis Waterhouse & Lyell, 1914; = bandjira Martin, 1911; = bimana Martin, 1911; = connectens Moulton, 1921; = conspicua Butler, 1866; = grynion Fruhstorfer, 1907; = intensa Moore, 1883; = intermedia Moore, 1883; = kyllene Fruhstorfer, 1910; = laratensis Butler, 1883; = leucoglene Felder & Felder, 1865; = niasicus Fruhstorfer, 1899; = nipalensis Moore, 1877; = partita Fruhstorfer, 1897; = plexippus auctt. nec Linnaeus, 1758; = sumatrana Moore, 1883; = sumbana Talbot, 1943; = telmissus Fruhstorfer, 1910; = tuak Pryer & Cator, 1894; = tychius Fruhstorfer, 1910; = uniens Martin, 1911; = wetterensis Fruhstorfer, 1899; = yuchingkini Murayama & Shimonoya, 1960 (hybrid chrysippus x genutia , Kurosawa, 1973)Danaus affinis (Fabricius, 1775) ( original name = Papilio affinis Fabricius, 1775; = abigar Eschscholtz, 1821; = adustus Godman & Salvin, 1882; = affinoides Fruhstorfer, 1899; = albistriga Talbot, 1943; = albonotata Howarth, 1962; = artenice Cramer, 1781; = aruana Moore, 1883; = astakos Fruhstorfer, 1906; = batjana Fruhstorfer, 1899; = bipuncta Talbot, 1943; = biseriata Butler, 1882; = bonguensis Fruhstorfer, 1899; = cecilia Bouganville, 1837; = chionippe Hübner, 1823; = cometho Godman & Salvin, 1888; = coriacea Fruhstorfer, 1906; = decentralis Fruhstorfer, 1899; = decipiens Butler, 1882; = decipientis Strand, 1914; = djampeana Van Eecke, 1915; = fergussonia Fruhstorfer, 1907; = ferruginea Butler, 1876; = fuliginosa Hagen, 1894; = fulgurata Butler, 1866; = fuscata Talbot, 1943; = galacterion Fruhstorfer, 1906; = gelanor Waterhouse & Lyell, 1914; = hegesippinus Röber, 1891; = insolata Butler, 1870; = jimiensis Miller & Miller, 1978; = jobiensis Grose-Smith, 1894; = kapaura Talbot, 1943; = kawiensis Fruhstorfer, 1899; = kiriwina Fruhstorfer, 1907; = leucippis Röber, 1891; = litoralis Doherty, 1891; = luxurians Fruhstorfer, 1907; = malayana Fruhstorfer, 1899; = molyssa Fruhstorfer, 1907; = mysolica Moore, 1883; = mytilene Felder & Felder, 1860; = nigrita Moore, 1883; = nore Swinhoe, 1917; = nubila Butler, 1866; = obscura Capronnier, 1886; = oesypera Talbot, 1943; = olga Swinhoe, 1917; = oros Fruhstorfer, 1907; = paradoxa Röber, 1939; = philene Stoll 1782; = piepersi Kalis, 1933; = pittakus Fruhstorfer, 1907; = pleistarchus Fruhstorfer, 1912; = pseudophilene Fruhstorfer, 1907; = pullata Butler, 1866; = rubrica Fruhstorfer, 1906; = sabrona Talbot, 1943; = sangira Fruhstorfer, 1899; = signata Talbot, 1943; = snelleni Kalis, 1933; = strephon Fruhstorfer, 1907; = subnigra Joicey & Talbot, 1922; = subnubila Fruhstorfer, 1907; = tambora Fruhstorfer, 1899; = taroena Van Eecke, 1915; = taruna Fruhstorfer, 1899; = transfuga Fruhstorfer, 1907; = tualana Talbot, 1943; = vandeldeni Kalis, 1933; = vorkeinus Röber, 1866; = wentholti Martin, 1914; = woodlarkiana Fruhstorfer, 1907)Danaus melanippus (Cramer, 1777) ( original name = Papilio melanippus Cramer, 1777; = hegesippus Cramer, 1777; = lotis Cramer, 1779; = thoe Hübner, 1816; = edmondii Bougainville, 1837; = nesippus C. Felder, 1862; = eurydice Butler, 1884; = celebensis Staudinger, 1889; = erebus , Röber, 1891 ; = haruhasa Doherty, 1891; = pietersii Doherty, 1891; = taimanu Doherty, 1891; = fruhstorferi Röber, 1897; = keteus Hagen, 1898; = indicus Fruhstorfer, 1899; = malossona Fruhstorfer, 1899; = lotina Fruhstorfer, 1904; = umbrosus Fruhstorfer, 1906; = philozigetes Fruhstorfer, 1907; = mezentius Fruhstorfer, 1910; = meridionigra Martin, 1913; = edwardi Van Eecke, 1914; = insularis Moulton, 1921; = albescens Röber, 1927; = kotoshonis Matsumara, 1929; = camorta Evans, 1932)Danaus eresimus (Cramer, 1777) ( original name = Papilio eresimus Cramer, 1777; = ares d'Almeida, 1944; = asclepidea Fabricius, 1938; = dilucida Forbes, 1939; = erginus Godman & Salvin, 1897; = estevana Talbot, 1943; = icensis Fuchs, 1954; = montezuma Talbot, 1943; = tethys Forbes, 1943)Danaus plexaure (Godart, 1819) ( original name = Danais plexaure Godart, 1819; = brasiliensis Capronnier, 1874)Danaus gilippus (Cramer, 1775) ( original name = Papilio gilippus Cramer, 1775; = berenice Cramer, 1779; = vincedoxici Hübner, 1816; = vincetoxici Hübner, 1816; = cleothera Godart, 1819; = manuja Eschscholtz, 1821; = xanthippus Felder & Felder, 1860; = thersippus Bates, 1863; = jamaicensis Bates, 1864; = strigosa Bates, 1864; = hermippus Felder & Felder, 1865; = nivosus Godman & Salvin, 1897; = esperanza Hoffman, 1924; = centralis Joicey & Talbot, 1925; = kempfferi Hall, 1925; = kerri Comstock, 1925; = vincetoxici Fabricius, 1938; = candidus Clark, 1941; = gilippina Hoffman, 1940; = wheeleri Talbot, 1943; = roedingeri Fuchs, 1954)Danaus chrysippus (Linnaeus, 1758) ( original name = Papilio chrysippus Linnaeus, 1758; = albinus Lanz, 1896; = amplifascia Talbot, 1943; = anomala Dufrane, 1948; = asclepiadis Gagliardi, 1811; = auriflava Van Eecke, 1914; = axantha Hayward, 1922; = bataviana Moore, 1883; = bipunctata Dufrane, 1948; = bowringi Moore, 1883; = candidata Hayward, 1922; = chrysipellus Strand, 1910; = clarippus Weymer, 1884; = completa Dufrane, 1948; = cratippus Felder, 1860; = deficiens Dufrane, 1948; = duplicata Dufrane, 1948; = duponti Dufrane, 1948; = evanescens Storace, 1949; = fuscippus Van Eecke, 1915; = gelderi Snellen, 1891; = hanoiensis Dufrane, 1948; = hypermnestra Stoneham, 1958; = impunctata Dufrane, 1948; = infumata Aurivillius, 1898; = joannisi Dufrane, 1948; = kanariensis Fruhstorfer, 1898; = lemeemagdalenae Lemeé, 1950; = limbata Matsumura, 1929; = luxurians Dufrane, 1948; = margarita Röber, 1926; = orientis Aurivillius, 1909; = ornata Dufrane, 1948; = petilia Stoll, 1790; = praealbata Froreich, 1928; = pseudopetilea Kalis, 1933; = radiata Dufrane, 1948; = reducta Dufrane, 1948; = rubra Van Eecke, 1915; = semialbinus Strand, 1910; = subpurpurea Matsumura, 1929; = subreducta Dufrane, 1948; = vigelii Heylaerts, 1884; = witteellus Overlaet, 1955; = yuchingkini Murayama & Shimonoya, 1960 (hybrid D. chrysippus x D. genutia )
Danaus chrysippus chrysippus (Linnaeus, 1758)Danaus chrysippus aegyptius (Schreber, 1759) ( original name = Papilio aegyptius Schreber, 1759; = Danaus chrysippus klugii Butler, 1886; = Papilio alcippus Cramer, 1777; = Danaus chrysippus liboria Hulstaert, 1931; = Danaus chrysippus alcippoides Moore, 1883; = Danaus chrysippus dorippus Klug, 1845; = Danaus chrysippus transiens Suffert, 1900)
