Butterflies of
the Amazon and Andes
Tamarindi Owlet
Opsiphanes tamarindi
FELDER
& FELDER,
1861
Family -
NYMPHALIDAE
subfamily -
MORPHINAE
Tribe - BRASSOLINI
subtribe -
BRASSOLINA
Opsiphanes tamarindi incolumis,
Catarata Bayoz, La Merced, Peru
Introduction
The Morphinae
comprises of about
140-150 neotropical species, of which 93 are included within the tribe
Brassolini. Of these 73 are placed in the Brassolina - a
subtribe
including the genera
Brassolis,
Blepolenis, Caligo,
Caligopsis,
Catoblepia, Dasyophthalma,
Dynastor, Mielkella,
Eryphanis,
Penetes, Mimoblepia,
Opoptera, Opsiphanes,
Orobrassolis and Selenophanes.
All Brassolines are crepuscular or nocturnal in behaviour, although a few
species also fly by day in the darkest areas of the forest.
The genus
Opsiphanes comprises of 11 species
distributed variously from Mexico to Paraguay and Argentina. The
butterflies are characterised by having a stout thorax and
abdomen, large eyes and sturdy antennae. The costa is strongly curved, and the
forewing termen
is slightly concave. In all species the upperside wings are dark
brown in colour with a diagonal orange or yellowish band on the forewings. The
undersides are an earthy brown hue. There are dark striations on the outer half of the wings, and
heavy marbling
at the base. On the hindwings there is a prominent ocellus within
which there is a white crescent, and there is a
smaller almost circular ocellus near the tornus.
Opsiphanes tamarindi occurs from Mexico to Bolivia. The
illustrated subspecies incolumis is
found in Peru, the lectotype location being the Chanchamayo
valley.
Habitats
This species is found in primary and secondary rainforest, at altitudes
up to about 1200m. It also occurs in humid deciduous forest but only flies in
such habitats during the rainy season.
Lifecycle
The eggs are globular
and pearly white in colour. They are laid
singly, usually in mid afternoon, on the trunks, leaf stems, or the underside of
leaves of the foodplants. Sometimes clusters of up to 14 eggs have been found
but these are thought to be either the result of visits by several females, or
of repeated visits by a single female. The eggs are frequently parasitised by
the wasp Ooencyrtus submetallicus.
The larvae
when fully grown are variable in appearance but are typically green with orange
dorsal stripes and a pair of red-brown cephalic horns. They feed
nocturnally on
Heliconia (
Heliconiaceae ),
Canna ( Cannaceae ),
Calathea ( Marantaceae )
and Musa ( Musaceae ). The last mentioned
genus includes bananas on which tamarindi larvae
sometimes become a pest. The larvae are parasitised by wasps including the Braconid
Apanteles opsiphanus and
Chalcids including
Spilochalcis nigrifrons and various
Brachymeria species. Dipteran parasitoids include the Tachinid
Archaetoneura aletiae.
The pupa can be either
green or brown. Pupation takes place within a flimsy silken shelter beneath a
leaf. The pupa is parasitised by wasps including the
Neotheronia, Brachymeria and
Phlugis. It is also attacked by the Pentatomid bug
Alcaeorhynchus, and the ants
Solenopsis and Parathrechina.
Opsiphanes tamarindi,
Satipo, Peru
Adult behaviour
Opsiphanes
tamarindi is crepuscular in behaviour, flying mainly
between 1700hrs and nightfall. It is active again between dawn and
about 1030hrs, at which time it visits rotting fruit including
banana bait. males also visit urine-tainted ground for minerals.
The butterflies are sedentary in behaviour, and usually so
engrossed in feeding that they are very reluctant to move.
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