Papilio antimachus - female or male

[wollastoni]

Some collectors are being scammed by purchasing female Papilio antimachus (rare in collections) that are actually altered males.
Here are some recent live photos by Sui Fai Pun that clearly show the differences between males and females:

Female :

papilio antimachus female.jpg (607.5 KiB) Viewed 49 times

Male :

papilio antimachus male.jpg (692.64 KiB) Viewed 47 times

Pictures taken in June 2025 in Uganda.

Main differences :
- females have rounded forewings
- females lacks the three white spots on the underside.

Be careful, some fraudulent sellers “cut” the forewings of males to round them like those of females. The absence of white spots is therefore a better indicator. So always check the underside !
Here is an example of a fake female with cut wings : https://archive.insectnet.com/thread/63 ... hus-female

I hope it will help.