Dominican snout
The Dominican snout (Libytheana fulvescens) is a species of snout butterfly that is endemic to Dominica, an island nation in the Caribbean Lesser Antilles.
| Dominican snout | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Nymphalidae |
| Genus: | Libytheana |
| Species: | L. fulvescens |
| Binomial name | |
| Libytheana fulvescens (Lathy, 1904) | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Taxonomy
It was first described in 1904, as Libythea fulvescens, by Percy Ireland Lathy of the Zoological Society of London.[1] It was reassigned to the new genus Libytheana in 1943 by American entomologist Charles D. Michener, who split L. fulvescens and three other New World species from the Old World Libythea species.[2]
Habitat and distribution
The Dominican snout is rare, and locally distributed on Dominica in dry coastal forest and scrub, at such sites as Cabrits National Park, Morne Espagnole, and Morne Daniel.[3]
Behavior and ecology
Its behavior has been described as similar to Libytheana carinenta.[4] Adults are active even in windy weather.[4] It is not gregarious and probably does not migrate.[5]
Generations are unknown but likely, because adults are found at different times of the year, though more commonly in the fall than the spring.[4] Its host plant is possibly the iguana hackberry tree (Celtis iguanaea).[5]
Adults have only been observed feeding on sap from wounded trees.[5]
Notes
- Lathy, Percy I. (1904), "A Contribution Towards the Knowledge of the Lepidoptera-Rhopalocera of Dominica, B.W.I.", Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1 (30): 450–453.
- Michener, Charles D. (June 10, 1943), "Some Systematic Notes on the Libytheidae (Lepidoptera)" (PDF), American Museum Novitates (1232): 1–2.
- Evans & James 1997, p. 10; Kawahara 2006, p. 272.
- Kawahara 2006, p. 272.
- Kawahara 2006, p. 373.
References
- Evans, Peter G.H.; James, Arlington (1997), Dominica, Nature Island of the Caribbean: Wildlife Checklists, Dominica Ministry of Tourism.
- Kawahara, Akito Y. (2006), "Biology of the snout butterflies (Nymphalidae, Libytheinae) Part 2: Libytheana Michener" (PDF), Trans. lepid. Soc. Japan, 57 (3): 265–277, archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-20.