Pale Mountain Satyr

Scientific Name
Lymanopoda eubagioides
FELDER & FELDER, 1867
Specie in
Family
Pale Mountain Satyr
Lymanopoda eubagioides, male, Manu cloudforest, 2800m, Peru – Adrian Hoskins

Introduction

There are 1100 known species of Satyrinae in the neotropical region. About 570 of these are placed in the subtribe Pronophilina – a diverse group of high altitude cloudforest butterflies, all of which are confined to the neotropical region. The vast majority are found only in the Andes, but 4 species are known from the Atlantic cloudforests of Brazil, and there are a further 6 species that are endemic to Guatemala, Costa Rica or Mexico. More oddly there is one genus Calisto that is found exclusively on the Caribbean islands of Cuba and Hispaniola.

There are a number of Lymanopoda species characterised by having a combination of obscurely marked straw-coloured undersides, and whitish uppersides reminiscent of Pierines. Amongst these are nivea, nevada, lactea and eubagioides.

Lymanopoda eubagioides (formerly known as palumba) is found in Peru and Bolivia.

Habitats

This is a high altitude cloudforest species, occurring at elevations between about 2000-3000m.

Lifecycle

The lifecycle appears to be unrecorded. The following generalisations are applicable to the subtribe Pronophilina and probably also apply to Lymanopoda: The eggs are round, white or pale greenish white, and laid singly on the foodplants or on surrounding vegetation. The larvae are typically pale brown, marked along the back and sides with narrow dark stripes, and tapering towards each end. The head is large in proportion to the body and has two short forward-pointing horns. The tip of the abdomen is equipped with a pair of caudal prongs which are used to flick the frass away from the feeding area. The larvae of all known Pronophilina feed on Chusquea – a genus of bamboo which grows in thickets, mainly along the courses of streams.

Adult behaviour

Like other Lymanopoda species, eubagioides is usually seen as singletons amidst mixed Pronophiline aggregations “mud-puddling” at damp spots along roadsides or the edges of streams.

More on this topic

Butterfly of
Scientific Name
Lymanopoda eubagioides
by
FELDER & FELDER, 1867
Family
SubFamily
SATYRINAE
Tribe
SATYRINI
SubTribe
PRONOPHILINA

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