Cabbage White (Pieris rapae)

 Insect Art to promote insect development.

The Cabbage White is found in every part of North America, from Northern Canada to Mexico, and in many other parts of the world. Originally an African and Eurasian species, it was introduced into Quebec Province in 1860. In a matter of decades, the butterfly had spread across the continent. The larvae of Cabbage Whites feed only on plants containing mustard oil, principally members of the Brassicaceae family. This characteristic makes them very unpopularwith farmers, since many brassicas are food plants for humans, as well. The mustard oil renders them unpalatable to birds, certainly a reason that these butterflies are so prolific. The adults nectar on a wide variety of flowers, including those of Asteraceae, Lamiaceae and Brassicaceae.The adults illustrated here are nectaring on Blazing Star (Liatris spicata).The larvae and a pupa are shown as observed on Tuscan Kale (Brassica oleracea).

Artist: Lanis Monfried
E-mail address: laniswm@optonline.net

Common Buckeye Butterfly

Common Buckeye (Junonia coeni)

Insect art to promote insect growth and development.

Named for it distinctive eye spots on its wings, the Common Buckeye has a wingspan of 2 - 2.5 inches.  The Buckeye prefers open, sunny areas with some bare ground and low vegetation. It is shown here
with Common Lantana (Lantana camara). During the day males perch to watch for females, flying periodically to chase other flying insects. Females lay eggs singly on the topside of host plant leaves upon which the caterpillar feeds (Depicted here is the Common Broad-leaved Plaintain (Plantago major).The Buckeye is found throughout the southern United States and north along the coasts. Although the Buckeye flies in summer throughout much of North, it is not able to overwinter very far north. In the autumn along the East Coast, there are impressive southward migrations. In places such as Cape May, New Jersey, the October hordes of Buckeyes drifting southward rival those of Monarchs in number and spectacle.

Artist:  Douglas Nieters  
E-mail address:  doug.nieters@credit-suisse.com
Website: http://www.dougnieters.com

Tulip Tree Moth

Tulip-tree Silkmoth (Callosamia angulifera)

 

Insect art to promote insect growth and development.

The Tulip-tree Silkmoth, a member of the Giant Silkworm family (Saturniidae), is found in the woodlands and forests of eastern North America. Silkworm moths exist solely to mate. Having no mouths, they neither eat nor drink and live for only a week. They are nocturnal, with distant males responding to the female’s pheromones, and mate between dusk and midnight. At dusk the following  evening the female lays eggs, in rows of 4-10, on the leaves of the tulip tree. The eggs hatch in a week with young caterpillars feeding in groups. Older caterpillars do not eat the main vein of the leaf and are solitary creatures. In nature the caterpillar feeds only on the tulip tree, also called the yellow poplar, (Liriodendron tulipifera); its range matches that of the tree, shown here. The cocoon, in a curled tulip tree leaf, is not attached beyond the petiole and falls to the ground where it overwinters.
Artist: Elise Ross
E-mail address:  elisejr@optonline.net

American Copper (Lycaena phlaeas)

American Copper (Lycaena phlaeas)  

Insect art to promote insect growth and development.

  

                                       

American Copper is a common widespread little butterfly that ranges from Nova Scotia south to Georgia, Tennessee, and Arkansas; west across the Great Lakes to North Dakota. In the east it can be found in open or disturbed areas, including pastures, fields, and landfills. This small butterfly has a wing span of 7/8 to 1 3/8 inches. Males perch on grass or weeds to wait for receptive females. Females lay ribbed, pale green eggs singly on the stems or leaves of its host plant, sheep sorrel, (Rumex acetosella). The chrysalis overwinters in leaf litter. There are between two and three broods a year.  The caterpillar can be reddish to yellowish-green, possibly marked with red on the back or sides. It reaches an average length of 3/4 inch. Caterpillars feed on Rumex acetosella by chewing holes on the underside of the leaves. Adult butterflies drink nectar from many flowers including buttercup, white clover, and butterfly weed.

Artist: Beth Rhame

Contact Beth at: Banditboo2@aol.com

Cecropia Moth - Insect Art

Cecropia Moth (Hyalophora cecropia)

The adult Cecropia, a member of the Giant Silkworm family, do not have functioning mouthparts and do not feed. This characteristic has coevolved along with their pheromone mating system: the ability of females to attract distant males, and thus their characteristic feathery antennae. They range east of the Rocky Mountains and are found in a variety of open areas such as backyards and woodlands. The caterpillar eats the foliage of many trees and shrubs. This specimen was hand-reared on Black Cherry, Prunus serotina. It uses nearby foliage as a mold to start spinning its cocoon, producing a complex "cocoon within a cocoon" double structure. The inner cocoon is suspended within a network of loose silk resembling coarse steel wool.The caterpillar is capable of varying its silk color to match dried foliage or branches from which it is suspended. The cocoon over-winters and the moth emerges in May.

Artist: Kathie Miranda
E-mail address: kathiemiranda@me.com
Website: http://www.kathiemiranda.com

MotherMonarchSlideShow.mov

Atala Butterfly (Eumaeus atala)

Atala Butterfly (Eumaeus atala)
Insect art to promote insect growth and development.

The Atala Butterfly, once thought to be extinct, is native to Florida. The host plant is the Florida coontie (Zamia floridana), which is a cycad, a "living fossil," (a form of the primitive plant life from the dinosaur era). The Atala can tolerate the natural toxins in coonties and uses the accumulated toxins and its brilliant coloration as a defense against bird predators. The female lays her eggs, five to fifteen, usually, on coontie stalks (depicted here) or deposited on the apex of mature leaflets. Caterpillars are known to be cannibalistic. The butterfly emerges in the early morning, courts and mates in the late afternoon, and dies within ten days.The nectar plant depicted here is the White Indigo Berry (Randia aculeata), a member of the Rubiaceae family. It is a pineland shrub with white, salmon-blushed fruit, and white star-shaped flowers that are exuberantly fragrant.

Artist: Sarah Saltus Siddig

E-Mail Address: sarahsaltsid@comcast.net