Caligo eurilochus
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Banana butterfly ( Caligo eurilochus ) |
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| ( Cramer , 1775) |
Owl Butterfly is a butterfly ( butterfly ) from the family of Nymphalidae (Nymphalidae). Like the other butterflies of the genus Caligo , it is called the banana butterfly in German.
features
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The moth reaches a wingspan of 10 to 13 centimeters and has a brown basic color. The upper side of the forewings is partially covered with beige. The beige becomes weaker towards the outer edge, while the basic color changes to black towards the inner corner. The top of the hind wings is black. Both pairs of wings of the males shimmer dark blue, the intensity increasing towards the basal region.
The undersides of the wings have a contrasting brown, black and cream-colored pattern. On each of the hind wings there is a large dark brown eye-spot , which is outlined in thin beige and black. One or two smaller eye spots are located in front of it towards the leading edge of the hind wing. A small eye-spot with a blue-black core and a rust-brown ring is located near the wing tip of the forewings. Due to their attention to detail, the large eye spots of the Caligo species are among the best imitations of eyes in animals. This is especially true for Caligo eurilochus . The dark core with a light half-ring on it and the light edge are strongly reminiscent of a light iris with a dark pupil , which has a reflection. It can be interpreted as an owl's eye, which is surrounded by a simulated plumage structure, which is why the Caligo species are also known as owl butterflies; not to be confused with the actual owl butterflies . However, it is controversial whether these eyespots imitate the eyes of a certain animal or whether they serve as secondary protection when a predator comes too close. The animals are primarily protected by their high-contrast pattern on the underside of their wings, a bark mimetic , when they rest on tree trunks with closed wings during the day.
Characteristics of the caterpillars
The egg caterpillars are white and have two red vertical stripes. The hornless head capsule is light brown and the forked end of the body is clearly visible. After the first molt, in the second larval stage (L2), the caterpillars are colored green and have the outer shape of the later larval stages. These caterpillars have a flat, slightly hairy body. On the head capsule, they have four pairs of rearward-facing horns with fine hair that grow longer from the outside in. The end of the body has a hairy fork tail. There are up to six black thorns on the back, with the middle ones being slightly larger. From L4 the caterpillars are colored dark brown. In Ecuador they are called la vaquita negra (black calf).
Eggs of Caligo eurilochus on a banana leaf
Young caterpillar with a green tinge on the rutty central rib of an eaten banana leaf
Older caterpillar with brown coloring on a banana tree
Doll of Caligo eurilochus
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Similar species
- Caligo memnon , fields , 1866
- Caligo brasiliensis , Felder , 1862, wasstill regardedby Stichel as a subspecies of C. eurilochus and is now regarded as a separate species. Widespread in central and southern Brazil.
- Caligo illioneus , Cramer , 1776
- Caligo idomeneus , Linnaeus , 1758
Caligo memnon
Caligo idomeneus
Occurrence
Caligo eurilochus eurolichos is common in Guyana , Suriname , French Guiana, and in the eastern and central Amazon of Brazil .
Distribution of the subspecies:
- C. eurilochus livius , Staudinger , occurs in the western Amazon
- C. eurilochus caesia , graver , arrives in Venezuela and Panama before
- C. eurilochus sulanus , Fruhstorfer 1904, is in northern Panama and Guatemala before
- C. eurilochus galba comes in Colombia before
- C. eurilochus morpheus , burin 1903, occurs in southern Colombia, Ecuador and Peru .
Way of life
The spherical white eggs are laid by the females individually or in small groups on the underside of the food plants. Apart from bananas, which first came to America with the Europeans, the caterpillars eat heliconia . The caterpillars are nocturnal and spend the day in sleeping colonies on the central ribs of the leaves of the food plants. The green caterpillars are well adapted to the leaves. Older caterpillars are brown like banana trunks, or the false trunks of heliconias and their sleeping colonies on them are difficult to recognize. At this stage they are already too big and noticeable to stay on the leaves. Since the caterpillars are not known to be inedible or toxic, good camouflage is the only way for the caterpillars to protect themselves from predators.
The caterpillars become about 13 centimeters long after four moults and walk around restlessly about two days before pupation. Then they make a web on a stable part of the food plant, to which they attach themselves, before they pupate a few days later into a four to five centimeter long, angular tumbler . The moths hatch after about five weeks.
The adults often suckle on fermenting fruits in the underbrush area, where their subdued colors offer them good protection. If the moths find enough food, they can live up to seven weeks. The moths are crepuscular and often sit with closed wings on tree trunks during the day.
In banana plantations, Caligo eurilochus can become a pest, although eight species of parasitiods ( hymenoptera and flyworm ) are known.
swell
Individual evidence
- ^ K. Lunau: Warning, camouflaging, deceiving. Mimicry and other survival strategies in nature. Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 2002.
- ↑ J. Koepke: Species-specific patterns of camouflage coloring of carrion and faeces-eating day butterflies in the tropical rainforest of Peru. Thesis. University of Kiel, 1980.
- ^ Bernard D'Abrera: Butterflies of the Neotropical Region. Pt. 3: Brassolidae, Acraeidae, Nymphalidae (part). Hill House Publishers, 1995, ISBN 0-9593639-5-5 , pp. 385-525.
- ↑ Hannes Petrischak: Analysis of color patterns and behavior in animals in the rainforest of Costa Rica on the basis of studies on butterflies (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Ithomiinae, Brassolinae) and their multimedia presentation in the "Media Dome". Dissertation. Kiel 2003. (eldiss.uni-kiel.de)
Web links
- The University of Arizona College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and The University of Arizona Library: Caligo Huebner 1819. In: Tree of Life Web Project. October 1, 2006, accessed January 10, 2008 .