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"
Royal beauty, but it's not a Monarch! "
The
butterfly identified on the cover (of your September 30 to October 6th
2001 issue) as a "Monarch" (Danaus plexippus), is in fact, a
"Viceroy" (Limenitis archippus), also known as, "the
mimic".
The
Monarch larvae feed primarily on common milkweed (Asclepius
syriaca). Most milkweeds produce organic chemicals that
are cardio-toxic poisons - "cardiac glycosides" which are
stored in the bodies of both the caterpillar and adult. These poisons
are distasteful and emetic to birds and other vertebrate predators.
After tasting a Monarch, a predator might associate the bright warning
colors of the adult or caterpillar with an unpleasant meal, and avoid
Monarchs in the future. The poison is potent enough to cause birds who
eat an entire Monarch caterpillar to convulse - some die from the
experience.
The
Viceroy's coloration and patterning has evolved to closely resemble
that of the Monarch, thus benefiting from the biological
"chemical protection" of the other specie. The
Viceroy and its larva are non-poisonous to birds.
"Viceroy"
(Limenitis archippus)
"The Monarch" (Danaus plexippus) - LINNAEUS,
1758
In areas of the Viceroy's
range where Monarchs are
common, the Viceroy tends
to mimic the pattern of the Monarch with
black striping and orange areas similar to a monarch. The Viceroy
can be distinguished from the Monarch,
however, by one row of white spots within the black fore and hind wing
bands. Larvae feed on various types of willows (Salicaceae)
and poplars (Populus).
Viceroys produce three generations per year, and the food habits of
each generation differs. The first brood consume carrion, decaying
fungi, and animal dung. Later generations are more often observed at
flowers of plants, such as Joe-Pye
weed, Aster, Canada Thistle, Shepherd's Needle,
and Goldenrod. The
name "Limenitis" is from the Latin word for 'marshes', a
reference to this specie's preferred habitat. The state insect of
Kentucky is the Viceroy butterfly (adopted on March 16, 1990).
The
author has been studying, collecting, rearing and releasing, and
photographing lepidoptera (butterflies and moths) of the World for 45
years. His collection is comprised of more than 15,000 specimens
from virtually every every country on Earth. That became
possible in part thanks to 17 years of a life outside of the USA.
-ed
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