Butterflies of
the Amazon and Andes
Colombian Admiral
Hypanartia
fassli
WILLMOTT, HALL & LAMAS, 2001
Family -
NYMPHALIDAE
subfamily -
NYMPHALINAE
Tribe - NYMPHALINI
Hypanartia
fassli, Ecuador
© Tony Hoare
Introduction
The
tribe Nymphalini includes many of the most well known and beautiful Palaearctic
butterflies, e.g. the Red Admiral
Vanessa atalanta,
the Comma
Polygonia c-album,
the Painted Ladies
Vanessa sp, the Camberwell Beauty
Nymphalis antiopa,
and the Peacock
Inachis io.
In the neotropics the tribe is represented by genera including
Nymphalis,
Polygonia,
Vanessa
and
Hypanartia.
The genus Hypanartia
includes 14 species, all of which occur primarily in the temperate climes of the
Andean cloudforests and the Cordilleras of Central America.
Hypanartia fassli
occurs in Colombia and Ecuador.
Hypanartia
fassli,
Ecuador © Tony Hoare
Habitats
This is cloudforest species, found at altitudes between
about 1400-2400m.
Lifecycle
I have no information specific
to fassli but the
lifecycle is likely to be similar to that of
Hypanartia cinderella as follows:
The eggs are white.
They are laid singly on leaves of
Pilea
( Urticaceae ).
The larva is black
and lustrous. It's back is adorned with branched black spikes on the thoracic
and tail segments, and white spikes on the middle segments. It lives solitarily within a tent of leaves, spun together with silk. It
periodically emerges from the tent to feed. The chrysalis is formed
within the larval tent, and is greyish, marked on the thorax with silver spots.
Adult behaviour
Males habitually visit runnels and seepages along roadsides, and
the wet rocky edges of mountain streams. They flit nervously from
spot to spot until they find a patch of ground rich in dissolved
minerals, where they drink, while periodically fanning their
wings. They will
bask with wings fully outspread in hazy sunlight, misty or
overcast conditions.
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