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Butterflies of
the Amazon and Andes
Zebra Sapseeker
Tigridia acesta
LINNAEUS, 1758
Family -
NYMPHALIDAE
subfamily -
NYMPHALINAE
Tribe - NYMPHALINI
introduction
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habitats |
lifecycle |
adult behaviour
Tigridia acesta, Rio Madre de Dios,
Peru
Introduction
Tigridia
acesta is the only member of its genus, but is closely related to the
Mosaic Colobura dirce. It is distributed throughout
much of the neotropics from Costa Rica to Bolivia.
Habitats
This species is primarily associated with lowland virgin rainforest, but also
occurs in lower numbers in secondary rainforest, humid deciduous forest and
cloudforest habitats at altitudes up to 1500m.
Lifecycle
The eggs are white, and laid singly on leaves of the foodplants. The fully grown
larva is long and thin, purplish-brown in colour, with an ochre head. It is
adorned with multi-branched spines on the head and on all the body segments. It
feeds solitarily on Cecropia and
Paruma ( Moraceae ). When feeding the larva bites
through the midrib of the leaf causing it to droop, and stretches across to feed
from the leaf tips. The chrysalis is dark reddish-brown, mottled with green, and
resembles a piece of algae-covered wood.
Adult behaviour
The
behaviour is very similar to that of
Colobura - the butterflies settle in a head-downwards
position on shaded, algae-covered tree trunks, at a height of
between about 1-4 metres. The wings are always held erect. It is
common to find 2 or 3 Tigridia
gathered on favoured trunks, imbibing moisture. Both sexes
reportedly also feed at rotting fruit.
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