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Shoemaker
Butterfly - Catonephele antinoe
Family Lycaenidae
Range: Southeast
Asia /
Captive live butterfly photographed at the Peggy Notebaert Nature
Museum, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
We realize these photos may not be good for anything save accurate markings - they were identified by Doug Taron, chief curator at the Notebaert.
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The Lycaenidae are members of
the Superfamily Papilionoidea, the true butterflies.
Worldwide in distribution, this family has
approximately 4,700 species that are unevenly
distributed. Coppers are especially dominant in
north temperate regions, blues are richest in the
Old World tropics and north temperate zones, and
hairstreaks are particularly abundant in New World
tropics. The adults are typically small to tiny and
often brilliantly colored--iridescent blues, bright
reds, and oranges.
Adults of both sexes have three pairs of walking
legs, though most males have fused segments in their
front legs. Most adults visit flowers for nectar,
but some harvesters feed on wooly aphid honeydew and
some hairstreaks feed on aphid honeydew or bird
droppings. Females lay single, sea urchin shaped
eggs on host leaves or flower buds; the resulting
caterpillars are typically slug-shaped. In many
species, caterpillars depend on ants for protection,
so caterpillars produce sugary secretions that are
collected by the ants. Most species overwinter in
either the egg or pupal stage.
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Butterflies have been
revered by mankind since before the dawn of recorded history.
They are among the most fascinating and beautiful animals; even
people who care not for insects in general usually have an
affection for these winged wonders. They live nearly everywhere
-- from gardens and forests and mountains to acid bogs and
frozen arctic tundra. Almost 700 of the world's 10 - 20,000
species live in North America north of Mexico. The butterflies
pictured here are captive, live butterflies. Live butterfly
exhibits have become very popular in the United States, for
obvious reasons. Children love butterflies, adults love
butterflies and museums find them easy to raise and maintain -
everybody wins. This happy circumstance is also good for the
wild butterflies - people who used to go into the rain forest
and capture live butterflies, or plunder their eggs and
chrysalises now can be set to work on butterfly farms, thereby
sparing our wild populations, and providing much needed jobs for
many impoverished regions. |
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