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Text and photographs
protected by Copyright © Adrian Hoskins
2007, and must not be published
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Butterflies of
West Africa
Common Dotted
Border
Mylothris rhodope
FABRICIUS, 1775
Family - PIERIDAE
subfamily -
PIERINAE
Tribe - PIERINI
introduction
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habitats |
lifecycle |
adult behaviour
Text and photographs protected by Copyright © Adrian
Hoskins 2007-2008, and must not be reproduced or published in part
or in whole elsewhere in any form without written permission from
Adrian Hoskins. Breach of copyright will be pursued by litigation.
Website designed, produced and owned by
Adrian Hoskins
Mylothris
rhodope, male, Bobiri Forest, Ghana
Introduction
The
genus
Mylothris
is confined to the African continent and includes 51 species, most of which are
distributed across the forest belt from Cameroon to western Kenya. It is
strongly allied to the neotropical genus
Pereute.
Mylothris
butterflies share a number of characteristics : They have rounded wings, with a
black apex on the upperside forewings. On the underside, fore and hindwings
have a single row of prominent black marginal spots, hence the butterflies in
this genus are all known as Dotted Borders.
The ground colour of the wings varies from
species to species. Some, such as
croceus
have a deep saffron-yellow ground colour, and others such as
humbloti
are greyish-buff. The majority of species however are white, but there is often
a basal flush of bright yellow.
The butterflies are
sometimes confused with
Belenois
species such as
B. theuszi,
but the latter is larger, and has a double row of submarginal spots.
Mylothris
rhodope occurs in
Sierra Leone, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Liberia, Cameroon, Gabon, Zaire, Congo,
Angola, Zambia, Ethiopia and western
Uganda.
Habitats
This is a forest species, occurring at elevations between sea level and about
800m. It is migratory in nature however, and can be commonly seen in open
country during the rainy season.
Lifecycle
The caterpillars feed on
Loranthus
( Loranthaceae ).
Adult behaviour
Both sexes are attracted to herbaceous flowers and flowering bushes, at which they nectar with the wings held half open or fluttering. Males are also attracted to mineralised moisture around the edges of puddles on forest tracks, and can be found singly or in small groups, aggregating with Appias, Graphium and Eurema species.
The flight is slow and deliberate, and in conjunction with the conspicuous appearance is indicative of the fact ( supported by experiment ) that the butterflies are distasteful to avian predators. It is likely that the toxins within their bodies are derived from the larval foodplants.
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