Melanargia pherusa

• Interesting Facts
• Common Names
• Description
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Interesting Facts

Common Names

Description

Family Nymphalidae

'The Nymphalidae are members of the Superfamily Papilionoidea, the true butterflies. Distributed worldwide, butterflies of this family are especially rich in the tropics. They are highly variable, and there are more species in this family than in any other. Adults vary in size from small to large, and their front legs are reduced, unable to be used for walking. Wing shape is also highly variable: some species have irregular margins (anglewings and commas), and others have long taillike projections (daggerwings). Browns, oranges, yellows, and blacks are frequent colors, while iridescent colors such as purples and blues are rare. Adults of some groups are the longest-lived butterflies, surviving 6-11 months. Adult feeding behavior depends on the species, where some groups primarily seek flower nectar while others only feed on sap flows , rotting fruit, dung, or animal carcasses. Males exhibit perching and patrolling behaviors when seeking mates. Egg-laying varies widely, as some species lay eggs in clustsers, others in columns, and others singly. Caterpillar appearance and behavior vary widely. Brushfoots overwinter as larvae or adults.

'[1]

Subfamily Satyrinae

The Satyrinae are medium-sized species of the Family Nymphalidae. Members of this worldwide group are most often brown with one or more marginal eyespots. Males often have visible patches of specialized scales on the fore- or hindwings . Adults have short proboscises and rarely visit flowers, feeding instead on rotting fruit, animal droppings, or sap flows . Nearly all species feed on grasses and grasslike plants , including bamboos , rushes, and sedges. Adults usually perch with their wings closed , but open them wide when basking early in the morning or during cloudy weather. Most species have local colonies and are not migratory. Males patrol when searching for mates, flying in characteristic slow, skipping flight. Eggs are laid singly on the host leaves or stems, and caterpillars feed within shelters of several leaves sewn together with silk . Development from egg to adult can take two years in arctic and alpine species, and it is synchronized in some species. In those species, adult butterflies are only found every other year. Satyrinae typically overwinter as partially grown caterpillars.[2]

Habitat

Biome: Terrestrial [3].

Ecology: The Sicilian Marbled White lives in rocky places with dry, grassy vegetation. Its foodplants are grasses and probably the false-brome Brachypodium retusum is one of them. After hatching , the tiny caterpillar first eats the shell of its egg and then becomes inactive in summer months, only beginning to feed in autumn. The next spring , when it is fully-grown, it spins a little tent from sand and plant remains in which to pupate. Detailed habitat descriptions are not available.[3].

List of Habitats:

•     3     Shrubland   
  
•     3.8     Shrubland - Mediterranean-type Shrubby Vegetation   
[more info]

Taxonomy

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Similar Species

Members of the genus Melanargia

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 8 species and subspecies in this genus:

M. arge (Italian Marbled White) · M. galathea (Marbled White) · M. galathea galathea (Marbled White Butterfly) · M. lachesis (Iberian Marbled White) · M. larissa (Balkan Marbled White) · M. pherusa (Sicilian Marbled White) · M. russiae (Esper's Marbled White Butterfly) · M. russiae russiae (Esper's Marbled White Butterfly)

More Info

• Search for Pictures: images.google.com
• Search for Scholarly Articles: Google Scholar
• Search using Scientific Name and Vernacular Names: All the Web | AltaVista Canada | AltaVista | Excite | Google | HotBot | Lycos
• Search using Specialized Databases: GenBank | Medline | Scirus | CISTI/CAL | Agricola Periodicals | Agricola Books

Further Reading

• Proceedings of the South London Entomological & Natural History Society. London [Eng]: South London Entomological and Natural history Society, [1897-1933] url , p. 35.
• The Entomologist's record and journal of variation. s.l., s.n. url , p. 137.
• The Entomologist. London: Simpkin, Marshall & Co., [1877- url p. 154, p. 174, p. 174, p. 229, p. 42.

Notes

Contributors

• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 17, 2012.
• IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. . Downloaded on January 28, 2012.
• van Swaay, C., Wynhoff, I., Verovnik, R., Wiemers, M., López Munguira, M., Maes, D., Sasic, M., Verstrael, T., Warren, M. & Settele, J. 2010. Melanargia pherusa. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloadedon 02February2012.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal February 26, 2008:

• SysTax
• SysTax: Lobbecke Museum Dusseldorf

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 2975009
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: Lep-142492.0
• IUCN ID: 222332
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 837741

Footnotes

1. http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/taxonomy?f=18&sci=Nymphalidae&com=Brush-footed Butterflies [back]
2. http://bugguide.net/index.php?q=search&keys=Paramacera&search=Search [back]
3. van Swaay, C., Wynhoff, I., Verovnik, R., Wiemers, M., López Munguira, M., Maes, D., Sasic, M., Verstrael, T., Warren, M. & Settele, J. 2010. Melanargia pherusa. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 02 February 2012. [back]

©2004-2012 David Stang. All rights reserved.