Papilio polyctor Boisduval, 1836 - Woolly-branded Peacock

Subspecies in India

No subspecies are listed under this species.

Taxonomic Information

This species was for many decades treated as a distinct species endemic to the Western Himalaya. After shortly being treated as a subspecies under Papilio bianor, it is now reinstated as a distinct species based on detailed molecular phylogenetic analyses (Condamine et al. 2023). According to this arrangement, Papilio bianor does not occur in the Western Himalaya any more.

Key references:

Condamine, F. L., R. Allio, E. L. Reboud, J. R. Dupuis, E. F. A. Toussaint, N. Mazet, S.-J. Hue, D. S. Lewis, K. Kunte, A. M. Cotton, F. A. H. Sperling. 2023. A comprehensive phylogeny and revised taxonomy illuminate the origin and diversification of the global radiation of Papilio (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 107758.

Conservation and Special status

This species, rather than Papilio bianor - Common Peacock, should rightly be treated as a State Butterfly of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. Papilio bianor - Common Peacock, as currently recognized, does not occur in Uttarakhand.

Photo Gallery and Species Biology


StateJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecNo date
Andaman and Nicobar Islands UT
Andhra Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh
Assam
Bihar
Chandigarh
Chhattisgarh
Dadra & Nagar Haveli UT
Daman & Diu UT
Delhi
Goa
Gujarat
Haryana
Himachal Pradesh
Jammu and Kashmir UT
Jharkhand
Karnataka
Kerala
Ladakh UT
Lakshadweep
Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra
Manipur
Meghalaya
Mizoram
Nagaland
Odisha
Puducherry UT
Punjab
Rajasthan
Sikkim
Tamil Nadu
Tripura
Uttar Pradesh
Uttarakhand
West Bengal
Total

Condamine, F. L., R. Allio, E. L. Reboud, J. R. Dupuis, E. F. A. Toussaint, N. Mazet, S.-J. Hue, D. S. Lewis, K. Kunte, A. M. Cotton, F. A. H. Sperling. 2023. A comprehensive phylogeny and revised taxonomy illuminate the origin and diversification of the global radiation of Papilio (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 107758.

Page citation

Kunte, K. 2024. Papilio polyctor Boisduval, 1836 – Woolly-branded Peacock. In Kunte, K., S. Sondhi, and P. Roy (Chief Editors). Butterflies of India, v. 4.12. Published by the Indian Foundation for Butterflies. URL: https://www.ifoundbutterflies.org/Papilio-polyctor, accessed 2024/12/14.