Life History of the Short Banded Sailor

Life History of the Short Banded Sailor (Phaedyma columella singa)

Butterfly Biodata:
Genus: Phaedyma C. Felder, 1861
Species: columella Cramer, 1780
Subspecies: singa Fruhstorfer, 1899
Wingspan of Adult Butterfly: 65mm
Caterpillar Host Plants: Cratoxylum cochinchinense (Hypericaceae), Pterocarpus indicus ( Leguminosae, Papilionoideae), Talipariti tiliaceum (Malvaceae), Ceiba speciosa (Malvaceae), Erythroxylum cuneatum (Erythroxylaceae, common names: Inai Inai, Wild Cocaine).


A Short Banded Sailor visiting Ixora flowers.

Physical Description of Adult Butterfly:
Above, this species resembles various Neptis species in having similar white markings against dark brown to black background. On the forewing, the white cell streak is narrow and short, and the spot in space 1a elongated. On the hindwing, the broad discal band does not reach the costa. In the male, vein 8 of the hindwing ends on the termen just below the apex (in contrast, this vein ends on the costa for Neptis species). The speculum on the hindwing upperside is prominent. Underneath, the white markings are set against yellowish brown background.


A Short Banded Sailor taking nectar from Ixora flowers.

A Short Banded Sailor resting on a leaf perch with closed wings.

Field Observations of Butterfly Behaviour: This species is not uncommon in Singapore and can be found in both urban parks and nature reserves. The sun-loving adults are often observed gracefully gliding in weak sailing flights, often settling on sun-lit spots with wings fully open. The adults visit flowers and ripening fruits for energy intakes, and the males also puddle for mineral intakes on damp patches. This species bears a close resemblance to the Common Sailor (Neptis hylas papaja), and two can only be distinguished with a closer scrutiny of the white markings on the wings. Generally, the Short Banded Sailor is larger than a typical Common Sailor.


Host plant : Cratoxylum cochinchinense Leaves (left) and flowers (right).

Early Stages:
The local host plants, Cratoxylum cochinchinense (Yellow Cow Wood), Pterocarpus indicus (Angsana) and Talipariti tiliaceum (Sea Hibiscus) can be readily found across the island in varied habitats. This probably accounts for the rather wide local distribution of this species. Caterpillars of Short Banded Sailor feed on both middle-aged and older leaves of these hosts.

A mating pair of the Short Banded Sailor.

The eggs of the Short Banded Sailor are laid singly at the tip of a leaf/leaflet on the host plant. During a typical oviposition stopover, the mother butterfly first lands on a chosen leaf/leaflet of the host plant and slowly reverses along the leaf surface towards the leaf tip where an egg is then deposited.

Two views of an egg laid at a leaf tip. Diameter: 1.1mm.
The eggs are somewhat globular in shape. Each has its surface marked with hexagonal pits and bearing spines at pit corners. The micropylar sits atop. Freshly laid eggs are green in colour, but turning pale green and then yellowish green when maturing. Each egg has a diameter of about 1.1mm.

Two views of a mature egg.

The egg takes about 3-4 days to hatch. The young caterpillar emerges by eating away part of the egg shell. The rest of the egg shell becomes the first meal for the newly hatched, which has a cylindrical pale green body covered with many small tubercles and short setae. Four pairs of subdorsal tubercles, on the 2nd and 3rd thoracic segments and the 2nd and 8th abdominal segments, are much larger and prominent. The head capsule is brown in color.

Two views of a newly hatched caterpillar eating the egg shell, length: 2.5mm.


1st instar caterpillar, after a new nibbles of leaf lamina adjacent to the oviposition site, length: 2.6mm.

After consuming the egg shell, the caterpillar proceeds to feed on the leaf lamina from the leaf tip. Typically the midrib is left intact as lamina on both sides is eaten. A small strip of lamina at the tip is also left intact as the caterpillar uses the site as a base for rests between feeds. Another interesting habit displayed by the caterpillar is the systematic cutting of leaf fragments and suspension of these fragments with silk threads, prior to eating them.

A 1st instar caterpillar resting at its base near its masterpiece of dangling leaf fragments.

As the caterpillar grows in this instar, the body turns increasingly green in base colour and tubercles on the body turn yellowish green in contrast. After reaching 5.0-5.5mm in 4 days, the caterpillar moults to the 2nd instar.

Two views of a 1st instar caterpillar, later in this stage, length: 4.2mm.

The body of the 2nd instar caterpillar features a faint outline of a dorsal saddle from the 3rd thoracic segment to the 8th abdominal segment, with the saddle being in light yellowish brown and the rest of the body in brown. Besides tiny tubercles covering most of its body surface, the 2nd instar caterpillar also features longer spines on the 2nd and 3rd thoracic segment as well as on the 2nd and 8th abdominal segment. The head capsule is light brown with darker lateral shadings. Its surface is dotted with a number of paler conical tubercles. The elongated face is wide at the base and narrow towards the apex. A pair of longer and more pointed tubercles sit at the top. The caterpillars of Short Banded Sailor in all instars have the habit of adopting a head-down posture with the dorsum of the thorax forward facing. This instar lasts about 3-5 days with the body length reaching about 8mm.

2nd instar caterpillar, newly moulted, length: 5mm


Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 7.5mm

The 3rd instar caterpillar has similar body markings as the 2nd instar with the following changes: The subdorsal spines are much longer, more pointed and featuring prominent branches, with the pair on the 3rd thoracic segment much longer than the other three pairs. The long dorsal saddle is now more prominent. Faint oblique and dark stripes also appear on the middle portion of the saddle. Its head capsule is longer vertically, featuring dark lateral and median stripes with the earlier apical spines now longer, more pointed and yellowed tipped. This instar takes about 3-4 days to complete with body length reaching about 10mm. Towards the end of the instar, one or two small white lateral patches appear on the 7th abdominal segment.

Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 7.5mm


Two views of 3rd instar caterpillar, late in this stage. Lengths: 8mm (top); 9.5mm (bottom).

The 4th instar caterpillar resembles the 3rd instar caterpillar closely. The dorsal saddle is now more distinct with it being a much light shade of olive brown than the lower part of the body. The subdorsal pair of spines on the 3rd thoracic segment has become proportionally much longer than the remaining three pairs, with the pair on the 2nd abdominal segment shortest. and hardly noticeable The head capsule is almost white to light pink in base colour and tiny circular dark pits dot its frontal surface. The two apical spines (horns) are orange-tipped. This instar lasts 5-7 days with body length reaching about 16mm.

Two views of a newly moulted 4th instar caterpillar.


Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, length: 14.5mm.

The 5th instar caterpillar is little changed from the 4th instar in most body markings and features. The subdorsal pair of branch spines on the 3rd thoracic segment, in darker brown, is again proportionately longer, and the pair on the 2nd abdominal segment degenerates further to near negligible size. Most 5th instar caterpillars also feature two small lime-green lateral patches on the 7th abdominal segment. The 5th instar caterpillar does not keep the earlier habit of cutting and hanging leaf fragments. Typically the caterpillar rests on the leaf upperside near the base of the leaf and feeds on the leaf lamina at the distal end.

Two views of a 5th instar caterpillar, early in this tage, length: 14mm.
One noticeable change from the 4th to the 5th instar is in spines and horns on the head capsule which are now proportionally shorter.


Frontal view of head capsules of Short Banded Sailor caterpillars. Left: 4th instar. Right: 5th instar.
Two views of a 5th instar caterpillar, length: 24mm.

The 5th instar lasts for about 7-9 days, and the body length reaches up to 25-26mm. On the last day, the color of the body decolorizes to pale/pinkish brown. The caterpillar ceases feeding and wanders around for a pupation site which typically is a small branch or stem. Here the caterpillar spins a silk mound to which it attaches its posterior end, and hangs vertically to take on the pre-pupatory pose.

A 5th instar caterpillar found on a Cratoxylum leaf of in Sourthern Ridges.

Two views of a pre-pupa of the Short Banded Sailor.

Pupation takes place a day later. The pupa suspends itself via a cremastral attachment to the silk mound with no supporting silk girdle. It is almost entirely pale brown in color. The abdominal segments are slender. The thoracic portion being larger with wing cases dilated laterally. The dorsum of the thorax is angular. The head is bluntly cleft at its front edge with small pointed lateral vertices. A pair of silver oval-shaped patches occurs on the dorsum of the metathorax, and a much smaller pair on the 1st abdominal segment. The pupa has the ability to flex laterally when disturbed. Length of pupae: 16-18mm.

Pupation Event of a Short Banded Sailor caterpillar

Three views of a pupa of the Short Banded Sailor.

After about 6 days of development, the pupal turns dark as the development within the pupal case comes to an end. The spots and streak on the forewing upperside also become discernible. The following day, the adult butterfly emerges from the pupal case.

Three views of a mature pupa. Markings on the forewings are now visible.

A newly eclosed Short Banded Sailor expanding its wings on its pupal case.

A newly eclosed Short Banded Sailor expanding its wings on its pupal case.

References:

• The Butterflies of The Malay Peninsula, A.S. Corbet and H.M. Pendlebury, 4th Edition, The Malayan Nature Society.
• Butterflies of Thailand, Pisuth Ek-Amnuay, 1st Edition, 2006
• The Butterflies of Hong Kong, Bascombe et al, Academic Press, 1999.

Text by Horace Tan, Photos by Benedict Tay, Ben Jin Tan, Khew S K and Horace Tan

Butterfly of the Month - May 2010

Butterfly of the Month - May 2010
Striped Blue Crow (Euploea mulciber mulciber)

The month of May is a usually much-anticipated month in the temperate countries, where the first sprouts of greens peep out from the melting snow and ice of the winter months. In Southeast Asia, it is the month of the intermonsoons, as the winds change and weather can get unpredictable - searingly hot for a few days, followed by thunderstorms.

A mating pair of Striped Blue Crow

May is also the month where we celebrate Mother's Day - a time where we pay tribute to every mother's sacrifices and efforts in nurturing the family and juggling a thousand and one things in their daily routines.

This month, we feature a species of the Danainae subfamily, the Striped Blue Crow (Euploea mulciber mulciber), This rather large butterfly is sexually dimorphic i.e. where the male and female look different from each other. The Striped Blue Crow displays aposematic colouration, typical of the genus Euploea of which the species of the genus are usually distasteful to predators, primarily due to their caterpillars' diet of lactiferous host plants.

A Striped Blue Crow's "baby" photo

The Striped Blue Crow is the most common species of the genus Euploea, also known collectively by their common English name of "Crows" - probably due to the fact that many of the species are typically black. The species can be found in urban parks and gardens as well as in the forests within the nature reserves of Singapore.

The common English name of this butterfly was probably derived from the female of the species, whose hindwing is striped with narrow white streaks. The upper side of the post-discal portion of the forewings is blue-shot, more distinct when illuminated by a side light, with prominent white spotting.

This photo features the attractive blue-shot iridescent forewings of the male of the Striped Blue Crow

Males are even more attractive, with deep blue iridescent forewings that are quite spectacular - visible even when in flight. The underside of the male is rather drab, with the usual dark brown colours of the "Crows" spotted with the typical white submarginal spots.

Occasionally, males of the species are observed puddling at muddy footpaths and banks of streams that have been tainted with decomposing organic matter.

The butterfly has a slow and unhurried flight, and is fond of wild flowers like Bidens pilosa and flowers of the occasional-flowering Syzygium trees and bushes. The Striped Blue Crow is also attracted to the flowers of Heliotropium indicum as well as the dried plant - often hovering around persistently and returns to the plant even when disturbed.

Text by Khew SK ; Photos by Sunny Chir, Federick Ho, Khew SK, Horace Tan, Benedict Tay & Derrick

Life History of the Quaker

Life History of the Quaker (Neopithecops zalmora zalmora)



Butterfly Biodata:
Genus: Neopithecops Distant, 1884
Species: zalmora Butler, 1870
Sub-species: zalmora Butler, 1870
Wingspan of Adult Butterfly: 22mm
Caterpillar Local Host Plants: Glycosmis chlorosperma (Rutaceae).

Physical Description of Adult Butterfly:

Above, the wings are dark brown. On the forewing, there is a white discal patch which is always present in the female but usually obscure or absent in the male. Beneath, the whitish wings feature a series of dark brown to black marginal spots and a post-discal series of disjoint striae. On the hindwing there is a prominent black spot in space 7 near the costa and a much smaller black spot in space 1a.

A Quaker about to take off from a perch on a leaf edge.


A Quaker puddling on a sandy ground.

Field Observations of Butterfly Behaviour:

This small species is not uncommon and is usually observed in the nature reserves flying alongside shady trails. Its flight is typically feeble and erratic. Usually only single individuals are encountered. The adults have been found to visit flowers, especially that of Leea indica. Puddling individuals have at times been sighted on moist sandy ground.

A Quaker taking nectar from a tiny flower of Leea indica.


A Quaker taking a break from its erratic flight.

Early Stages:

The local host plant, G. chlorosperma, is a large shrub and can be found growing at multiple sites within the nature reserves. Its leaves are pinnate with 5-7 elliptic leaflets, each of which 10-14cm long. One noteworthy feature (common to Glycosmis spp.) is that its young shots, twigs and leaves are covered with rusty-red pubescence. The larva stages of the Quaker feed on the young to middle-aged leaves before they are hardened.

Host plant: Glycosmis chlorosperma.

The female Quaker typically lay eggs singly on young leaf buds or the surface of a young leaf of the host plant. However, at times more than one egg can be found laid on the same leaf bud or young leaf.

Female Quakers attempting to oviposit on young leaf (left) and leaf buds (right).

The small egg is discoid in shape (about 0.4-0.5mm in diameter) with the surface sculptured with a polygonal reticulum of ridges. When freshly laid, the egg is whitish with a pale green undertone.

Two views of an egg of the Quaker. Diameter: 0.4mm-0.5mm.

Each egg takes 2-2.5 days to hatch. The young caterpillar emerges after nibbling away a large portion of the egg shell the remnant of which is left alone as the caterpillar moves to feed on the leaf lamina nearby. Measured at a length of about 0.9mm to 1.0mm, its pale yellowish green body sports long dorso-lateral and lateral setae, and a pale yellowish green head capsule, After about 1.5-2.0 days of growth, its length reaches about 2.2mm. The rather puffed-up caterpillar then lies dormant on the substrate for a period of time before its moult to the 2nd instar.

Two views of a newly hatched caterpillar, length: 0.9-1.0mm.


Two views of a 1st instar caterpillar, length: 1.8mm.

The 2nd instar caterpillar is yellowish green in colour. Now the body surface is covered in numerous short setae. Dorsally, the metathoracic segment and 1st-6th abdominal segments have small paired humps with long setae exuding from them. Long setae also occur laterally along the body perimeter. After about 2-2.5 days of growth, the body length reaches about 4mm. During the end phase of this instar, the caterpillar stays dormant for about 0.5 days prior to its moult.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 2.2mm.


Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 2.9mm.

The 3rd instar caterpillar has numerous short but rather prominent fine body setae which are mostly brown in colour. The prothoracic shield is barely distinguishable as it it coloured in the same body base colour of yellowish green. The dorsal nectary organ on the 7th abdominal segment, and the two tentacular organs on the 8th abdominal segment are now distinguishable. The 3rd instar takes about 2.5-3 days to complete with the body length reaching about 6.5mm.

Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 4mm.


Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 6mm.


Two views of a dormant 3rd instar caterpillar, readying itself for the moult to the final instar.

As in the 3rd instar, the 4th (and final) instar caterpillar has numerous short and fine body setae and relatively longer lateral setae. The body color is yellowish green to pale green.

Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 8mm.


Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 11mm.

In the 4th instar, the proportionally larger prothoracic shield is more noticeable than in the earlier instars. It is in a lighter shade of yellowish green than the body base colour, and is diamond-shaped with the lower half more compressed than the upper. The dorsal nectary organ is also noticeable and ants have been observed to attend to it during field observations. The eversible tentacular organs are also conspicuous at this stage.

Left: The prothoracic shield. Right: The dorsal nectary organ (DNO) and tentacular organs (TO)..


A 4th instar caterpillar being attended by an ant.

An ant attending to a 4th instar caterpillar of the Quaker.

After 3.5-4.5 days of growth and reaching a maximum length of around 11mm in the final instar, the body of the caterpillar gradually shrinks. The caterpillar ceases eating and wanders around for a pupation site. All bred specimens chose to enter their pre-pupatory phase on the leaf surface of a host plant leaf. Typical of many lycaenid species, the caterpillar readies itself for pupation by spinning a silk girdle and a silk pad.

Two views of an immobile pre-pupatory larva of the Quaker, Note the silk girdle.

Pupation takes place after one day of the pre-pupal stage. The lightly hairy pupa has the typical lycaenid shape. It is yellowish green to green in base colour with a variable number of black to dark brown patches dotting its body surface. The pupa is secured to the substrate with a silk girdle and its attachment to the silk pad via cremastral hooks. The small pupa has a length of about 7mm.

Two views of a pupa of the Quaker, length: 7mm

Five days later, the pupa becomes darkened in color signaling the imminent emergence of the adult. The next day the adult butterfly emerges from the mature pupa.

Two views of a mature pupa.


A newly eclosed Quaker drying its wings.

References:

• The Butterflies of The Malay Peninsula, A.S. Corbet and H.M. Pendlebury, 4th Edition, The Malayan Nature Society.
• Butterflies of Thailand, Pisuth Ek-Amnuay, 1st Edition, 2006.

Acknowledgments:

I would like to express my gratitude to Samsuri Ahmad of NParks for generous assistance in the identification of the host plant.

Text by Horace Tan, Photos by Mark Wong, Anthony Wong, Khew SK and Horace Tan