Anthocharis sara

Anthocharis sara
	Anthocharis sara , male
Systematics
Class :	Insects (Insecta)
Order :	Butterflies (Lepidoptera)
Family :	Whitelings (Pieridae)
Subfamily :	Pierinae
Genre :	Anthocharis
Type :	Anthocharis sara
Scientific name
	Anthocharis sara
	( Lucas , 1852)

Anthocharis sara is a butterfly ( butterfly ) from the family of Whites (Pieridae).

features

butterfly

The wingspan of the moth is 27 to 40 millimeters. They have a white, sometimes yellowish wing base color. On top of the front wings spread out over the Submarginalregion and Postdiskalregion a clear orange red spot from which is pronounced somewhat weaker in females. This ends at the black discoid spot and is bordered in black on both sides. The underside of the hind wings shows an irregular gray-green mottling.

Egg, caterpillar, pupa

The eggs have a creamy color immediately after being laid, but after a few hours it turns into orange-red tones. They are oval in shape and have transverse ribs on the entire surface. The eggs are laid one at a time on the underside of the leaf of a food plant.

Freshly hatched caterpillars are colored orange and have short, thin, dark hair. In the course of development they first turn yellowish, then light greenish. Adults are deep green in color, with a white side stripe and some short dark hair.

The belt doll has a long, narrow, conical head and is initially greenish. Before the moths hatch, it takes on a brown color and the orange-red drawing elements of the moths then already shimmer through.

Similar species

The species resembles Anthocharis cethura , in which the orange-red spot on the upper side of the forewing is paler and the gray-green speckle on the lower side of the hind wing is fused like a ribbon.

There is also a certain similarity to the males of the aurora butterfly ( Anthocharis cardamines ). However, since this occurs in Europe and Asia, there is no geographical overlap with Anthocharis sara .

distribution and habitat

The distribution area of Anthocharis sara stretches from the middle of Alaska along the North American west coast on the Pacific to California , which is why the species is sometimes referred to as the Pacific Orangetip or Western Orange Tip in English . It prefers to colonize barren, dry areas, sandy fields, and sometimes light forests.

Way of life

The species usually forms one generation per year. The main flight time of the moths is then from March to June. In California, two generations are sometimes formed, the moths of which fly in the months of February to April or May and June. The moths like to suckle on flowers to ingest food. Young caterpillars prefer to feed on leaves, older ones on flowers and fruit clusters. They feed polyphag by a large number of food plants from the plant family of cruciferous (Brassicaceae), and include: Gänsekresse - ( Arabis ) and Barbara crocus ( Barbara ) or black mustard ( Brassica nigra ), Cardamine californica , Streptanthus breweri and many others . The species overwinters as a pupa.