Mestra dorcas
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Mestra dorcas |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Mestra dorcas | ||||||||||||
| ( Fabricius , 1775) |
Mestra dorcas is a butterfly ( butterfly ) from the family of Nymphalidae (Nymphalidae).
description
butterfly
The wingspan of the moth is 35 to 50 millimeters. The basic color of the upper side of the wing is milky white. The submarginal region of the forewings is colored orange or gray. A comma-shaped disk spot extends from the dark front edge. The broad orange or yellow band in the submarginal region of the hind wings is typical of the species. The undersides of the wings show similar drawing elements as the upper sides, but they are usually stronger in color. Due to the characteristic drawing, the moths are unmistakable.
Caterpillar
Adult caterpillars have a black basic color and are equipped with many black thorns on the back and sides. There are two long, thin, black, straight horns on the head, which end in a spherical shape.
distribution and habitat
The range of the species begins in the north of Texas , where the subspecies Mestra dorcas amymone occurs. Sometimes the moths migrate further north to Minnesota . To the south, Mestra dorcas populates Central America and large parts of South America . The species lives predominantly in subtropical areas, preferably in fields and on the edges of forests.
Way of life
In Texas, the moths fly in several generations throughout the year. To accommodate nectar they like to suck the flowers of lantana ( Lantana ). The caterpillars feed on the leaves of the milkweed family (Euphorbiaceae), for example Dalechampia scandens , Tragia volubilis and Tragia neptifolia .
Subspecies
The following subspecies are distinguished:
- Mestra dorcas dorcas (Fabricius, 1775), Jamaica
- Mestra dorcas amymone (Ménétriés, 1857), in Texas , Nicaragua, and Costa Rica
- Mestra dorcas apicalis (Staudinger, 1886), in Brazil ( São Paulo , Pará , Goiás ), Bolivia and Argentina
- Mestra dorcas hersilia (Fabricius, 1777), in Colombia , Guyana , Trinidad and Tobago and St. Lucia
- Mestra dorcas hypermestra (Hübner, 1825), in Brazil (Pará) and Paraguay
- Mestra dorcas latimargo (Hall, 1929), in Ecuador
- Mestra dorcas semifulva (C. & R. Felder, 1867), in Colombia
swell
Individual evidence
- ^ Butterflies and Moths of North America http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Mestra-amymone
- ↑ Mestra dorcas at Butterflies of America http://butterfliesofamerica.com/mestra_dorcas_specimens.htm
- ↑ a b c James A. Scott: The Butterflies of North America: A Natural History and Field Guide. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press, 1986, ISBN 0-8047-2013-4 , p. 266
- ↑ Distribution and subspecies http://www.nic.funet.fi/pub/sci/bio/life/insecta/lepidoptera/ditrysia/papilionoidea/nymphalidae/biblidinae/mestra/index.html#dorcas
literature
- James A. Scott: The Butterflies of North America , Stanford University Press, Stanford CA., 1992, ISBN 0-8047-2013-4 , p. 266
