Urania sloanus
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Urania sloanus |
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| ( Cramer , 1779) |
Urania Sloanus is an extinct butterfly ( moth ) from the family of Urania moth (Uraniidae). It wasendemicto Jamaica .
features
Urania sloanus reached a wing span of 64 to 76 millimeters. Both the fore wings and the hind wings were quite long and narrow. The top of the wing was deep black. On the right and left of the forewings there were six to seven shiny green-gold cross bars. The two middle crossbars were divided into two or sometimes three parts at the front. On the black background of the lower wings there were irregularly indented copper-red, blue, and gold-green cross bars. The drawing of the underside of the wing corresponded to the upper side. The green cross bars, however, were lighter. The edge of the abdomen was more or less golden green. The tails were black with a few emerald green spots.
Way of life
Although Urania sloanus was diurnal, its flight technique showed it to be a real moth. One of the most detailed reports on the behavior of Urania sloanus in foraging for food was written by Philip Henry Gosse in 1851. Especially in the first week of April and sometimes in June one could see large swarms of avocado flowers. The moths appeared just before sunrise and stayed on the flowers until 8 or 9 a.m. The heat of the day kept the butterflies resting, only to reappear after the afternoon rain. The sunlight brought out the shimmering colors.
die out
Urania sloanus used to be very common in the Blue Mountains . However, this species has not been sighted since 1894 or 1895 and is now considered most likely to be extinct. Although habitat loss may have played a role in the decline, considerable areas of primary forest have been preserved. One of the main food crops for caterpillars, Omphalea triandra , is apparently still widespread in the island's humid forests. Another forage plant could have been Omphalea diandra , which was previously found in Portland Parish , one of the main distribution areas of Urania sloanus , but has not recently been detected in this region. Due to the loss of forage crops for the caterpillars, the population has probably collapsed so drastically that ultimately an extinction of the species was inevitable.
Systematics
Urania sloanus was first portrayed in 1725 by Hans Sloane in the second volume of his Natural History of Jamaica . In 1758 Carl von Linné confused this species with Papilio leilus (today Urania leilus ). In 1779 the first scientific description was made by Pieter Cramer under the name Papilio sloanus . In 1816 the species was placed in the genus Urania by Jacob Huebner .
literature
- Philip Henry Gosse (1880): Urania sloanus at home . Entomologist 13: pp. 133-135 online
- Philip Henry Gosse (1881): Urania sloanus at home II - The Larva and Pupa . Entomologist 14: pp. 241-245 online
- David Lees and Neal Smith (1991): Foodplants of the Uraniinae (Uraniinae) and their Systematic, Evolutionary and Ecological Significance PDF file or OCR document . In Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society , Volume 45.
- WF Kirby: A Hand-Book To The Order Lepidoptera. Volume III. Butterflies (Concluded) .– Hesperiidae. Moths.-Part I. Edward Lloyd, Limited. London, 1896: p. 48-49 online
- James Duncan: Entomology. Foreign Butterflies. In: William Jardine (Ed.): The Naturalist's Library. Volume 31. WH Lizard's. London, 1858: 202 Online
