Immature stages of the Selaginella-feeding Euptychia mollina (Nymphalidae: Satyrinae) from the Brazilian Amazon

By

Freitas, André Victor Lucci
Mota, Luísa L.
Barbosa, Eduardo Proença.
Carreira, Junia Y. O.

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2019-6-4

Original Publication

Nature conservation

Volume

36

Pages

1--7

Subjects

Camouflage , caterpillar , Euptychiina , Lepidoptera

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers 2012-

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/zoologia.36.e32053

 

Abstract

The present paper describes the immature stages of the Neotropical satyrine butterflyEuptychiamollina(Hübner, [1813]) from the Brazilian Amazon Forest. Eggs were laid singly on the under surface of the fronds of its host plant,Selaginellasp. (Bryophyta: Selaginellaceae). Larvae are solitary in all instars, presenting a color pattern and shape that make them cryptic on its host plant. The pupa is short, smooth and varies from rusty brown to green. Despite the lack of a close phylogenetic relationship, larvae ofEuptychiaare very similar to those of the paleotropical satyrinesRagadiaandAcrophtalmia, suggesting that camouflage is likely to be one of the factors explaining the similarities among them.