Butterflies of
North America
Variegated
Fritillary
Euptoieta
claudia
CRAMER, 1775
Family - NYMPHALIDAE
subfamily -
HELICONIINAE
Tribe
- ARGYNNINI
Euptoieta claudia, Tennessee, USA ©
Ken Childs
Introduction
The genus
Euptoieta can be regarded as
biologically intermediate between true Heliconiines such as
Dryas, Dione
and Heliconius - and the true
Fritillaries such as Speyeria,
Argynnis and
Issoria.
Euptoieta
comprises of 9
species, most of which are found in various parts of South
America, the exceptions being hegesia
which is found from Mexico to Brazil, and
claudia which is found in the USA, Mexico and Jamaica.
Habitats
This species
occurs mainly in open, disturbed areas including scrubby
grassland, fields and along roadsides. It is also found in
lesser numbers in woodland clearings. The butterfly is primarily
a lowland species, found between sea level and about 500m.
Lifecycle
The eggs are
pale green, and laid singly on the leaves and stems of the
larval foodplants. These include Viola,
Hybanthus ( Violaceae );
Linum ( Linaceae );
Metastelma ( Asclepiadaceae );
Sedum
( Crassulaceae
); Plantago ( Plantaginaceae ); and
Passiflora ( Passifloraceae ). The caterpillar
is white, with 5 broad reddish longitudinal stripes, the dorsal
stripe being interrupted by a series of white dashes. Each
segment of the body carries 6 black spines. The chrysalis
is very colourful, being pale turquoise, with tiny black dots, a
black proboscis, yellow antennae, orange eyes and golden
tubercles along the back.
Adult behaviour
Males sometimes
imbibe mineralised moisture from damp ground, but both sexes are
most commonly encountered when nectaring at
Eupatorium,
Lantana, and various other flowering plants.
|
