Fascinating of butterfly

Butterflies have magnificent colors and fly cheerfully from flower to flower in the air. Since their behavior do not bite or sting, butterfly is a insect model of innocence.

Jumat, 17 Februari 2012

Butterflies of Antigua

Page 34
On October 30, 1975, Antigua Post released the butterfly stamp set comprised of one souvenir sheet and 7 postage stamps features species of butterflies, like : Eurema elathea, Danaus plexippus, Phoebis philea, Marpesia petreus Thetys, Papilio Polydamas , and Vanessa Cardui.

Page 35a
Eurema Elathea is a butterfly of genus Eurema,   in the family of Pieridae. Its occurs from the USA to Paraguay, and is also present on most Caribbean islands.

 
The upper-side forewings of male Eurema elathea are yellowish, with a broad blackish-brown apex, and a broad straight blackish bar along the inner margin ( dorsum ). The hind-wings of the male are white, with a broad dark brown border.
This butterfly breeds in disturbed semi-open forest edge habitats, which may include roadsides, riverbanks, secondary forest and farmland. It occurs at altitudes between sea level and about 1800m.
Eurema Elathea is usually encountered as colonies of several dozen individuals, which can be seen fluttering slowly amongst low herbage in disturbed forest edge habitats.Both sexes nectar at low growing flowers and at Lantana bushes. Males of this butterfly do not normally mud-puddle or visit sandbanks.
 
Page 35b
Danaus plexippus or The Monarch butterfly  is a milkweed butterfly (subfamily Danainae), in the family Nymphalidae. It is perhaps the best known of all North American butterflies.


The Monarch butterfly is famous for its southward migration and northward return in summer from Canada to Mexico and Baja California which spans the life of three to four generations of the butterfly.
Its wings feature an easily recognizable orange and black pattern, with a wingspan  around of 9 centimetres . The upper side of the wings is tawny-orange, the veins and margins are black, and in the margins are two series of small white spots. The fore wings also have a few orange spots near the tip. The underside is similar but the tip of the fore wing and hind wing are yellow-brown instead of tawny-orange and the white spots are larger.

Page 35c
Phoebis philea or The Orange-barred Sulphur  is a species of butterfly found in the Americas including the Caribbean.There are two to three generations per year in Florida and one in the northern part of the range with adults on wing from mid to late summer.
The species habitat is in tropical scrub, gardens, fields, and forest edges. The species eats nectar from red-colored plants.The larvae feed on Cassia species.The wingspan is around 75 mm.

Page 35d
Marpesia petreus Thetys  or Ruddy Daggerwing, is a species of butterfly of the Nymphalidae family. It is found in Brazil north through Central America, Mexico, and the West Indies to southern Florida.
 
The wingspan is around 80 mm and generally found at tropical dry forest regions.Larvae feed off the following plants,  Anacardium occidentale (marañon) and Ficus citrifolia, meanwhile Adult butterflies feed off the following plants, Eupatorium sp,  Mikania micrantha, Cordia sp,  Croton sp and Lantana sp.

Page 35e
Eurema proterpia or The Tailed Orange  is a North and South American butterfly in the family Pieridae.This species may be found from mid-July to early January in Arizona, from August to November in Texas, and all year round in Mexico.

The upper side of the wings is orange with a variable amount of black along the fore wing costa. The wing veins are lightly marked with black in summer individuals, and winter individuals have no black veins. Males reflect UV light on their upper sides, and some females can be white. The underside of the wings varies depending on the season.The wingspan measures around 35 mm.

Page 35f
Papilio Polydamas or Battus polydamas is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae.This butterfly flies from April to November in three generations in the north of its range, throughout the year in several generations in the tropics. The larvae feed on Aristolochia species.

Papilio Polydamas is mainly present in open woods and in abandoned fields and areas.The wingspan is around 110 mm without the tail. The upper-side of the wings is black with a broad sub-marginal band formed by large yellow spots. The undersides of the forewings have the same pattern, while the hind wings have a sub-marginal row of red drawings.

Page 35g
Vanessa cardui is a well-known colourful butterfly, known as the Painted Lady.  Its close relative to the Australian Painted Lady (Vanessa kershawi, sometimes considered a subspecies) ranges over half the continent.

Other closely related species are the American Painted Lady (Vanessa virginiensis), and the West Coast Lady (Vanessa annabella).
The species is resident only in warmer areas, but migrates in spring, and sometimes again in autumn. It migrates from North Africa and the Mediterranean to Britain in May and June.
Larvae feed on Asteraceae spp., including Cirsium, Carduus,Centaurea, Arctium, Helianthus, and Artemisia spp.
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