Butterflies of
the Amazon and Andes
Norica Daggerwing
Marpesia themistocles
FABRICIUS, 1793
Family - NYMPHALIDAE
subfamily -
CYRESTINAE
Tribe - CYRESTINI
Marpesia themistocles
norica, Satipo, Peru
Introduction
The
genus Marpesia is confined largely to the neotropical region, but is closely allied to the
Mapwing and Maplet butterflies ( Cyrestis &
Chersonesia ) of the Oriental region.
Daggerwings
are similar in wing shape to Swordtails and Swallowtails ( Papilionidae ), but
the latter have 6 legs whereas Marpesia and all
other Nymphalidae genera have only 4 legs. Another feature to look for is the
antennae. In all Papilionids these are recurved at the tip, but in
Marpesia they are straight. In total there
are 17
Marpesia
species, all with the same wing shape as
zerynthia,
except for
petreus
which has 2 tails on each hindwing and a deeply scalloped outer margin to it's
forewing.
Marpesia
themistocles can be
confused with the female of
M.
livius,
but the latter is silvery on the underside, whereas
themistocles
has a cryptic brown dead-leaf appearance.
Marpesia
themistocles is also known by the synonym
norica. The latter taxon is now classified as a subspecies of
themistocles.
The
butterfly occurs
in Venezuela, Brazil, Peru and Bolivia.
Marpesia themistocles
norica, Catarata Bayoz, Le Merced, Peru
Habitats
This is a lowland rainforest species occurring at elevations between about
100-700m.
Lifecycle
I have no data relating to
themistocles,
but the following characteristics are applicable in general to the genus
Marpesia
:
The
eggs are white or yellowish, and laid singly on the foliage of trees and shrubs
in the family Moraceae - including
Ficus, Chlorophora, Brosimum
and Artocarpus.
The
fully grown caterpillars are very colourful, typically marked with red and / or
yellow spots and stripes. There is a single row of unbranched, recurved spines
along the back, and the head is adorned with a pair of very long wavy spines.
They feed diurnally and rest on the upper surface of leaves. The
pupae are typically pale in colour, marked with blackish spots or blotches, and
have wiry filaments projecting from the back of the abdomen and from the head.
Adult behaviour
Males are usually encountered
singly, or occasionally in twos and threes when visiting wet sand or mud to imbibe
mineral-laden moisture. They tend to be less active than other Marpesia species, and
commonly bask with wings outspread. In particularly hot weather the wings are held erect.
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