Yellow Fever Mosquito (Forest Form) vs Common Euphaedra

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Yellow Fever Mosquito (Forest Form) Common Euphaedra
Scientific Name Aedes africanus Euphaedra medon
Order Diptera Lepidoptera
Family Culicidae Nymphalidae
Size 4-6 mm 55-70 mm wingspan
Habitat Forests Forests
Diet Blood Feeders Dung Feeders
Regions Tropical Africa, forest regions West Africa (Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Liberia)
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Yellow Fever Mosquito (Forest Form)

A dark forest mosquito that maintains the sylvatic cycle of yellow fever virus among monkeys in African tropical forests. It breeds in tree holes in the forest canopy and bites primarily non-human primates. It occasionally transmits yellow fever to humans who enter the forest.

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Did You Know?

This species maintains yellow fever virus in a monkey-mosquito cycle in the forest canopy, serving as the original reservoir of the disease.

Common Euphaedra

A forest-dwelling butterfly with deep orange-brown wings and distinctive blue-purple iridescent bands. It is one of the most commonly encountered Euphaedra species in West Africa. Males and females differ significantly in pattern.

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Did You Know?

Over 200 species of Euphaedra exist in Africa, making it one of the most species-rich butterfly genera on the continent.