Coeliades forestan, the striped policeman, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found from Transkei to Zimbabwe and to Botswana, and also in Western Africa, notably in Burkina FasoTom Jamonneau, Abubakar S Ringim, Michel Libert, Andrea C Reyes Camargo, Alain Coache, Jérémy Bouyer, Annotated checklist of the butterflies (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea) of Burkina Faso, West Africa—synthesis and new occurrences, Journal of Insect Science, Volume 26, Issue 3, May 2026, ieag018, https://doi.org/10.1093/jisesa/ieag018. It is also present on Madagascar and Mauritius.Butterflies of Mauritius by J.R. Williams
The wingspan is 45–55 mm for males and 55–64 mm for females. Adults are on wing year-round in warmer areas with peaks September to April.
The larvae feed on a wide range of plants, including Parinari curatellifolia, Lonchocarpus capassa, Combretum bracteosum, Combretum apiculatum, Solanum auriculatum, Solanum mauritianum, Millettia sutherlandii, Sphedamnocarpus rhamni, Sphedamnocarpus pruriens and Robinia pseudacacia.
Subspecies Coeliades forestan forestan (Sub-Saharan Africa) Coeliades forestan arbogastes (Guenee, 1863) (Madagascar & Mauritius)
Stamps The Republic of Chad has issued a stamp showing a Coeliades forestan in 2003.Stamps on wnsstamps.ch
References