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Butterflies of
the Amazon and Andes
Dwarf Yellow
Nathalis iole
BOISDUVAL, 1836
Family - PIERIDAE
subfamily - COLIADINAE
Tribe
-
Nathalis iole Cuba �
Peter Bruce-Jones
Introduction
There are about 340
species of Pieridae found in the neotropical region, of which 70 are
placed in the subfamily Coliadinae - the 'sulphurs' and 'yellows'.
Almost all Coliadinae species are nomadic or migratory in behaviour,
so have wide ranges of distribution, and can be found across a
variety of different habitats.
The genus
Nathalis comprises of just 2 species -
plauta which is found in Venezuela and
Colombia; and iole which has a more
northerly range. On the upperside both species are pale yellow with
the apex and borders of the forewings dark brown, but
iole additionally has a long dark bar
stretching from the base of the forewing to almost meeting the black
post-median spot.
Nathalis iole is
distributed from the southern states of the USA to the Sierra Nevada
de Santa Marta in Colombia. It also occurs in the Caribbean on
Jamaica and Cuba.
Habitats
To be completed.
Lifecycle
The yellow
skittle-shaped egg is laid singly on the upper surface of a leaf of
the foodplant Florestina
( Asteraceae ).
When young the larva rests on the top of the leaf, nibbling tiny
holes out of it, but when older it rests on the stems and eats
chunks from the edges.
The chrysalis is
green and looks much like those of other Coliadinae, except that the
palpi do not project. It is attached by the cremaster and a silken
girdle to a woody stem, or sometimes to a wall or fence. Unusually
the pupa is suspended, rather than adopting the head-upwards posture
used by almost all other Pieridae.
Adult behaviour
Both sexes are
nomadic, roaming across scrubby deserts and other open dry habitats.
They nectar at a wide variety of flowers.
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