Butterflies of
Thailand, Malaysia &
Borneo
Lesser Gull
Cepora nadina andersoni
DISTANT, 1885
Family - PIERIDAE
subfamily -
PIERINAE
Tribe - PIERINI
introduction
|
habitats |
lifecycle |
adult behaviour
|
 |
|
Cepora
nadina andersoni,
Bukit Tapah, West Malaysia |
Introduction
The genus Cepora is closely allied
to Appias, and comprises of 16
species of which 6 are found in the Australian region, and 10 in
the Oriental region.
In West Malaysia there are 3 species -
nadina, iudith and
nerissa. On the upperside all 3
species are white, heavily marked with dark brown on the veins,
apex and wing margins. These markings are heaviest in the
females, which also have broader and more rounded forewings. In
iudith the upperside hindwings are
flushed with brilliant yellow, whereas in
nadina there is just a faint trace of yellowish in the
tornal area.
The gorgeous chrome yellow on the underside of
nadina is present in both sexes but
only in the wet season form of the species. The dry season form
is a much plainer creature in which the yellow is replaced by a
pale umber hue.
Cepora nadina occurs in Sri Lanka,
India, Myanmar, Bhutan, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, south China,
West Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo and the Andaman islands.
Habitats
In West Malaysia this species is found in open areas in primary
and secondary forest at altitudes between about 200-600 meters.
Lifecycle
The caterpillar feeds on Capparis,
and when fully grown is green and covered with small tubercles
each of which bears a short white hair.
Adult behaviour
This extremely handsome species is scarce in Malaysia, and
normally seen only in one's and two's.
Males are strongly attracted to urine and seepages where they
join aggregations of Appias,
Eurema and
Graphium. If disturbed they invariably settle on nearby
foliage, but are nervous, so while the
Eurema and Graphium tend to
return to feed quite quickly, nadina holds back until it senses that any threat of danger has
long passed.
|
