Phyciodes tharos
| Phyciodes tharos | ||||||||||
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Phyciodes tharos |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||
| Phyciodes tharos | ||||||||||
| ( Drury , 1773) |
Phyciodes tharos is a butterfly fromthe noble butterfly family (Nymphalidae).
features
butterfly
The wingspan is 30 to 35 millimeters. The length of the fore wings is 14 to 16 millimeters in the males, in the females 16 to 18 millimeters. The top of the wings is lined with orange and thick black. Black markings such as veins, spots and dots run over the wings. The underside of the wings is yellowish white and has brown veins. There are two distinct brown spots on the forewings, while a bright crescent-shaped spot can be seen on the hind wing. Females are generally darker in color than males. The tips of the antennae are black and white, especially in their more southerly distribution area further west and north this changes to an orange-black as in Phyciodes morpheus . In early spring and late autumn, a variant of the species occurs that is brownish in color. This is due to less light in their larval stage just before their diapause .
Underside of the wings of the male
Underside of the wing of the female
eyes
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egg
The eggs are green and are deposited in groups of 20 to 300 on the underside of the host plant's leaves. Up to 700 eggs can be laid per female.
Caterpillar
The body of the caterpillars is dark brown and covered with small white dots. There is a black line in the middle of the back and a cream-colored line with black lines on each side. Cream-colored ribbons, which are bordered in black and have a curved line of white dots above, run to the sides. The strongly branched brown spines are often whitish spotted. The head is black with a cream-colored triangle and crescent-shaped, equally colored markings around the eyes and a line or sometimes a point on the forehead.
Doll
The pupa is cream-colored, sometimes yellowish-brown in color and usually more orange than that of Phyciodes morpheus . A transverse brownish stripe runs across her back to her stomach, which has a cream-colored band on the side. The wings are yellow-brown. The shape of the pupa is more similar to that of Phyciodes morpheus than Phyciodes batesii , which has more edges.
Similar species
- Phyciodes morpheus , less orange with more black areas on the upper side of the wings. The antennae tips are orange-black in color and the species is larger than P. tharos and occurs further south.
- Phyciodes cocyta , with larger orange areas on the upper side of the hind wings.
- Phyciodes batesii , much darker and with a slight checkerboard pattern . Males show a bright orange band on the top of the forewings.
Behavior and way of life
The moths like to settle in meadows with the food plant. Here you can sometimes find hundreds of specimens. They fly in several generations. In southern Texas and southern Florida , it's three to four from April to October. In Virginia and New York to the Colorado plains from May to September and in Saskatchewan , there are two generations from May to August, although further north in the southern parts of the Canadian states the flight time is more likely to start in early June. Adult moths are very local. They ingest nectar from a wide variety of flowers e.g. B. Dog poison plants (Apocynaceae), silk plants (Asclepiadoideae), Venus crest ( Scandix pecten-veneris ), asters ( aster ) and winter cress ( Barbarea vulgaris ). But they can also be seen in mud puddles, where they absorb minerals. Males patrol their territory near the host plant in search of females throughout the day. Here they prefer valleys. They hybridize with Phyciodes morpheus , which also produces viable offspring. P. tharos tharos and P. tharos morpheus are considered subspecies in Colorado. In West Virginia and Virginia to Pennsylvania they are considered a separate species.
The male woos the female by flying after her and causing her to land. When the females land, the male approaches from behind while the female spreads her wings. Now a kind of courtship dance begins in which the male flaps his wings and flaunts. With wings slightly open, the male then crawls under the female's hind wings to mate. Meanwhile, females ready to mate sit motionless. If they are not ready to mate, they flap their wings apart to drive the male away, or they lift their belly to make mating impossible. It has also been observed how they squirm or simply drop into the vegetation. Sometimes they also flee in other ways to escape the advances of the males.
The caterpillars eat different types of asters ( aster ). It is believed that they also feed on the yellow crown beard ( Verbesina helianthoides ), but this is still doubtful. When breeding, however, they also took asteris like Erigeron peregrinus . In their young caterpillar stage they are gregarious and only eat the leaves from the underside. In the third stage, the caterpillar overwinters.
distribution and habitat
The species inhabits North America from the temperate zone of Canada such as southeast Alberta , eastern and southeastern Ontario , Manitoulin Island , Québec, and Riding Mountain National Park in Manitoba, as well as all states in the eastern United States through southern Montana , Wyoming , Colorado , New Mexico , Arizona to southeastern California and the subtropical areas of southern Mexico .
Wet and dry meadows, prairies, forest edges and roadsides as well as gardens and river banks are inhabited here. It is also often found in pine forests .
Subspecies
In addition to the nominate form, two other subspecies are distinguished in the ITIS report:
- Phyciodes tharos tharos , ( Drury , 1773) - New York . Is generally lighter in color.
- Phyciodes tharos riocolorado , Scott , 1992
- Phyciodes tharos orantain , Scott , 1998
There are still other subspecies to be distinguished.
- Phyciodes tharos arctica ( dos Passos , 1935) - Newfoundland . Has an orange color and yellow undersides of wings.
- Phyciodes tharos morpheus - Colorado, Washington .
status
The species is widespread and common. In some parts, especially at the edges of their range, the species can be rare.
swell
literature
- Elizabeth Balmer: Butterflies: Recognizing and Identifying. Parragon Books, 2007, ISBN 9781407512037 , p. 123
- James A. Scott: The Butterflies of North America: A Natural History and Field Guide. Stanford University Press, Stanford 1992, ISBN 978-0804720137 , pp. 311-312
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d Butterflies of Canada , English, accessed on February 17, 2015
- ↑ a b c d Butterflies and Moth of North America , English, accessed February 17, 2015
- ^ ITIS report , English, accessed on December 29, 2014
- ↑ a b c BioKids , English, accessed on February 17, 2015
- ^ ITIS report, Phyciodes tharos arctica , English, accessed on February 17, 2015
