Butterflies Galore! : Orange Emigrant

Butterflies Galore!
The Orange Emigrant (Catopsilia scylla cornelia)

Amongst the three species of the genus Catopsilia in Singapore, the Orange Emigrant gets my vote for being the prettiest of the three. Fast-flying and erratic in flight, this Pierid is common and more so whenever its caterpillar host plants, Senna fistula and Senna surattensis are cultivated. The underside of the Orange Emigrant is orange-yellow with brown markings. The upperside of the forewings is white with black borders whilst the hindwings are orange-yellow.

This Orange Emigrant is feeding on the flower of the Lantana, an all-time favourite nectaring plant for butterflies. The pink variety, shown here, is less popular with butterflies compared to the orange and red varieties. The proboscis of the butterfly can be seen coated with pollen from the stamens of the flower. Butterflies are good pollinators of flowering plants when they go about feeding on nectar from the flowers.