1973] 
Young — Parides areas mylotes 
13 
the rearing studies at Lawrence, all the larvae died either in the 
first or second instar when reared on A. ringens Vahl, A. littoralis 
Parodi, and A. gigantea (Mart. & Zucc.). For the groups of larvae 
offered these species, survivorship was 0 %. Thus, in addition to the 
two known natural food plants of P. areas mylotes , namely Aristo- 
lochia sp. from La Selva and A. constricta from Tirimbina, the 
butterfly only feeds successfully on A. labiata Willd. in Costa Rica. 
Behavior of adults and larvae 
Observations on adult behavior are limited to the oviposition strat- 
egy of this species, since a later report (Young et al., in prep.) will 
discuss other aspects of adult behavior, most notably, the spacing 
patterns of males and females, and the courtship strategy. 
Adults of both sexes generally cruise very low over second-growth 
vegetation. Mated females in search of oviposition sites exhibit 
extreme forms of cruising behavior in two ways : ( 1 ) they perform 
sudden, almost vertical darts into the canopy where Aristolochia 
lianas are found, and (2) they flutter through very dense second 
growth within a few inches of the ground, and often being obscured 
from view for several minutes. 
Such patterns of cruising behavior by egg-laying females are con- 
sistent with the observation of well-developed food plant specializa- 
tion in this butterfly. The usual situation locally is that eggs are 
laid on a single species of Aristolochia , and there is considerable site- 
selectivity exercised in terms of placing the individual eggs securely 
on the older leaves of an individual plant. The eggs are seldom 
laid on young leaves and occasionally on stems at crotches between 
two stems. Eggs are customarily laid on the dorsal surface of older, 
well-shaded leaves of the vine, and anywhere from one to five eggs 
may be laid in a loose cluster in this manner. Upon landing on a 
leaf for oviposition, the female exhibits considerable wing fluttering 
and drumming behavior with the antennae; an egg is usually laid 
within 12 seconds. Oviposition is most commonly seen during sunny 
hours throughout the day. While males may be cruising in the 
general vicinity of egg-laying females, there is virtually no observable 
interactions between the sexes. The less cohesive nature of the mated 
female portion of a local breeding population of P. areas mylotes 
(Young et al., in prep.) results in there usually being no more than 
one or two ovipositing females at a larval food plant patch on a given 
day. These individuals cover large tracts of habitat in searching for 
oviposition sites, but usually return repeatedly on the same day to a 
given food plant patch. 
While clustering of eggs in the field is generally loose and vari- 
