Chilades cleotas
Andrew V. Z. Brower
Introduction
Chilades cleotas is sometimes placed in Luthrodes Druce (viewed here as a subjective junior synonym). The species ranges from islands west of New Guinea to the New Hebrides and Solomon Is. Larvae feed on cycads and can be quite destructive of their hostplants. It is probable that, like the neotropical hairstreak genus Eumaeus, the larvae are able to sequester azoxyglycosides from the cycads and to employ them as a chemical defense. The large orange patches on the wings, apparent gregariousness (see photo) and slow, bobbing flight described by Parsons (1999) would all suggest that the butterflies are chemically defended from predation.References
Parsons, M. 1999 The butterflies of Papua New Guinea: their systematics and biology. San Diego: Academic Press.
Title Illustrations
| Scientific Name | Chilades cleotas |
|---|---|
| Location | Efate Island, Vanuatu |
| Comments | Eggs are visible as small whitish dots on central vein of Cycas fronds. |
| Specimen Condition | Live Specimen |
| Identified By | Andrew V. Z. Brower |
| Behavior | ovipositing females |
| Sex | Female |
| Life Cycle Stage | adults and eggs |
| Copyright | © 2009 |
About This Page
Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA
Correspondence regarding this page should be directed to Andrew V. Z. Brower at
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Chilades cleotas .
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- First online 23 February 2009
- Content changed 23 February 2009
Citing this page:
Brower, Andrew V. Z. 2009. Chilades cleotas . Version 23 February 2009 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Chilades_cleotas/123156/2009.02.23 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/
