Epiphile dilecta, Tatama NP, Colombia – Adrian Hoskins
Introduction
The Biblidinae are recognised by their diverse but simple and colourful patterns. In the neotropics their representatives include the tribe Epiphilina, which includes the genera Pyrrhogyra, Asterope, Temenis, Nica, Peria, Lucinia, Bolboneura and Epiphile.
There are 16 Epiphile species, distributed variously from Mexico to Bolivia. All have a similar pattern of bright orange bands on a dark brown ground colour. In males of most species the dark areas are overlaid with a strong purple-blue iridescence. In females the orange is replaced by white, and there is no iridescence. The underside hindwings of all species are similar to those of dilecta, having a marbled pattern with a series of post-median ocelli and a cream ‘tooth’ mark on the costa.
Epiphile dilecta is found in Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. There are 3 named subspecies, distinguished by the width of the orange bands.
Habitats
This species inhabits cloudforest at elevations between about 600-2000m.
Lifecycle
To be completed.
Adult behaviour
The butterflies spend most of the day high in the canopy, but males occasionally descend to imbibe mineralised moisture from the edges of shallow streams. They rarely fully outspread their wings but often hold them at an angle of 45�, or fan them rapidly as they walk over the wet ground.