MORPHOLOGY

External characteristics

Male
Forewing length (mm): 43-51. Wingspan (mm): 70-92.
Forewings: Upperside black, with or without macular band of separate narrow white spots from outer margin in space 4 to 2/3 of costa, tiny white spot at margin in space 8; underside similar, but may have a pale violet submarginal spot in space 1a-b. Hindwings crenulate, may be slightly extended at vein 4, but does not form a tail; macular row of elongate white to creamy-white spots from inner margin (space 1a) to space 7 near apex; underside similar.

Female
Forewing length (mm): 54-64. Wingspan (mm):74-92.
Forewing may be similar to male, but usually quite different, more brown than black, with crenulate outer margin, basal third dark brown, rest of wing brown with dark veins and dark internervular stripes; underside similar. Hindwing crenulate, extension at vein 4 as in male, but more often enlarged to a prominent, often spatulate, tail; upperside dark brown, usually with smaller or larger red submarginal spots and red median spots in spaces 1b to (at most) 5, larger or smaller central white field, covering at most bases of spaces 1b-5 and upper part of cell, but may be completely absent, so that hindwing has only conspicuous red markings.

Subspecies and variation

Part of the variation is geographical and six subspecies have been distinguished, but within the subspecies the variation in the female may still be considerable. For instance, in ssp. ledebouria (Philippines), some females are similar to the males, some lack the white patch on the hindwing completely, some have only white spots as the bases of spaces 3 and 4, in other specimens the white area may cover as much as the middle of space 1b, the bases of spaces 2-5, and the upper part of the cell.

Similar species

As in P. polytes, several female forms apparently mimic Pachliopta aristolochiae, but the wings of the latter are much narrower and the outline of the forewing is never crenulate. The species is rather similar to P. polytes from further west; apart from P. alphenor on the average being a bit larger, the white on the hindwing in the females is more prominent and more purely white than in the many forms of P. polytes.

_{source: Jan Moonen, peronal communication 2020}