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2007, and must not be published
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Butterflies of
the Andes
Ornate Junea
Junea doraete
HEWITSON. 1858
Family -
NYMPHALIDAE
subfamily -
SATYRINAE
Tribe - SATYRINI
subtribe -
PRONOPHILINA
introduction
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habitats |
lifecycle |
adult behaviour
Text and photographs protected by Copyright © Adrian
Hoskins 2007-2008, and must not be reproduced or published in part
or in whole elsewhere in any form without written permission from
Adrian Hoskins. Breach of copyright will be pursued by litigation.
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Adrian Hoskins
Junea
doraete feeding at dung, Manu cloudforest, 3200m, Peru
Introduction
The
Pronophilina are an exclusively neotropical group of Satyrines, all of which
occur in cloudforests, at altitudes between 1800-3500 metres. The subtribe
includes 562 known species, all of which feed as larvae on
Chusquea
- a genus of bamboo ( Poaceae ).
The
genus Junea
is allied to Pseudomaniola,
Thiemeia
and Daedalma,
all of which have scalloped wing margins and prominent ocelli, although
these characteristics are far more pronounced in
Junea
than in the other genera.
There are only two species of
Junea, namely
doraete
and dorinda.
Both have brown uppersides marked with whitish spots which form a single row on
the outer forewings of dorinda,
and a double row on doraete.
The latter species is the more spectacular of the two, having more heavily
scalloped wings, and a more prominent and contrasty pattern on the underside.
Junea doraete occurs
from Colombia to southern Peru, and possibly Bolivia.
Habitats
This is a very scarce and rarely glimpsed high altitude species which frequents
the transitional zone where paramo or dry puna grasslands merge with stunted
cloudforest at altitudes between 2800-3500m in the Andes. I have only
encountered the species twice - at Pululuhua Crater in northern Ecuador, and
Manu cloudforest in the eastern Andes of southern Peru.
Lifecycle
Unknown.
Adult behaviour
In Ecuador I found a male, aggregating with Lasiophila and Lymanopoda, to feed at the corpse of a small snake which had been run over by a vehicle. In Peru I found a group of 4 males feeding at fresh mammalian dung at 3370m. The butterflies were undisturbed by my presence, and ignored heavy vehicles that passes closely, but flew up to settle on the thin trunks of stunted trees when thin cloud caused the temperature to drop slightly. The return of full sunshine a few minutes later caused two to return and recommence feeding at the dung.
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