Butterflies of
the Amazon and Andes
False Doris
Archonias brassolis
FABRICIUS,
1776
Family -
PIERIDAE
subfamily -
PIERINAE
tribe - PIERINI
Archonias brassolis negrina, Satipo, Peru
Introduction
In the
neotropical region there are a total of 192 representatives of the subfamily
Pierinae.
The genus
Archonias comprises of a single species
brassolis, which is divided into 11 subspecies.
Archonias very strongly resemble certain members of
the Heliconiinae and it seems likely that both groups of taxa are involved in a
mimicry complex that may also include unpalatable moths in the family Arctiidae.
In the case of
Archonias brassolis the underside is extremely
similar to that of the Heliconiine Laparus doris,
and the colour and pattern of the upperside wings is strongly reminiscent of a generalised
Heliconiine.
It is probable that Heliconius,
Laparus and Archonias
are all noxious to birds. If a bird tastes one of them it will associate the
butterfly's colour and pattern with the unpleasant experience. As a result it
will sight-reject other similarly coloured butterflies regardless of whether
they are toxic or palatable. Palatable butterflies that mimic noxious ones are
called Batesian mimics. In cases such as Archonias
and Heliconius where several ( often unrelated )
noxious species share a similar warning pattern they are known as Mullerian
mimics.
While birds are easily fooled
by the similarities between Archonias and
the aforementioned insects, they can easily be distinguished from each other by
human observers. Archonias like all members of the
Pieridae have 3 pairs of legs. Heliconius and
Laparus however are members of the Nymphalidae and
thus have only 2 visible pairs, as the front pair are reduced to very short
stumps. The shape of the wings is also much more elongated in
Heliconius and Laparus.
The various subspecies of Archonias brassolis are
variously distributed from Mexico to Paraguay. The race
negrina is restricted to southern Amazonia, including Peru, Mato Grosso (
Brazil ), Bolivia and northern Argentina.
Habitats
This
species is found in rainforest and cloudforest habitats at altitudes between
about 200-1000m
Lifecycle
The early
stages are unknown.
Adult behaviour
The
butterflies are usually encountered singly. Males can sometimes be found amidst
aggregations of Heraclides,
Laparus and other species, imbibing water from the edges of puddles, seepages or small
streams. They can sometimes be seen perching on foliage in forest edge habitats,
and often use the same perching place for several days.
Both
sexes visit
Eupatorium and other flowers for nectar, and keep their wings closed while feeding. On
overcast days however they will bask for long periods on low vegetation with
their wings fully or partially outspread.
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