Euploea sylvester
Species of butterfly
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Euploea sylvester, the double-branded crow,[2] also known as the two-brand crow[1] in Australia, is a butterfly found in South Asia,[2] Southeast Asia and parts of Australia that belongs to the crows and tigers, that is, the danaid group of the brush-footed butterflies family.[1]
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| Double-branded crow | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Clade: | Pancrustacea |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Nymphalidae |
| Genus: | Euploea |
| Species: | E. sylvester |
| Binomial name | |
| Euploea sylvester (Fabricius, 1793) | |
| Synonyms | |
Several races of the butterfly are recognized. Race pelor is found in Australia.[3]
Subspecies
The subspecies of Euploea sylvester are:[1][2]
- E. s. sylvester - Cape York - Rockhampton, Torres Strait Is.
- E. s. coreta (Godart, 1819) - Sri Lanka, S.India
- E. s. hopei (Felder & Felder, 1865) - Sikkim - Burma, Assam, Indo-China, Peninsular Malaya
- E. s. swinhoei - Taiwan
- E. s. pelor Doubleday, 1847 - NW.Australia, Northern Territory
Description
In shape, colour, and markings, it very closely resembles Euploea core. Males, however, can be distinguished at once by the presence of two brands instead of a single one on the forewing. Of the females Lionel de Nicéville says, females of E. coreta can be separated from the females of E. core by the following points: "First by the outline of the forewing being more entire; in core it is slightly but perceptibly scalloped- Second, by the underside of the forewing having a complete series of six spots, one between each pair of nervules outside the cell; in core two of these spots, those above the discoidal nervules (veins 5 and 6), are always wanting. Third, the two brands on the interno-median area (interspace 1) of the forewing in the male are faintly but quite perceptibly to be traced in the female in the same position."[4][5]
Larval food plants
The double-banded crow feeds on plants of the families Apocynaceae (dogbanes and oleanders) including Parsonsia, Hoya, and Cynanchum,[6] Asclepiadaceae (milkweeds) including Marsdenia[7] and Moraceae (figs) including Ficus obliqua, Ficus microcarpa, Ficus racemosa, Gymnema sylvestre and Ichnocarpus frutescens [8]
Gallery
E. s. pelor In Australia
E. s. hopei In Buxa Tiger Reserve, West Bengal, India
E. s. coreta In Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Male E. s. swinhoei in Taiwan
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