Plains Cupid

Fascinating facts about the Plains Cupid

• Four subspecies are recorded, each tied to a distinct region: L. p. pandava (mainland), L. p. vapanda (Philippines, described 1899), L. p. lanka (Sri Lanka, described 1925) and L. p. peripatria (Taiwan, eastern China, Okinawa, described 1989). These dates map the butterfly's taxonomic history and hint at how geographic isolation drives subtle evolutionary divergence.
• In Calcutta the larvae feed on the cultivated cycad Cycas revoluta, chewing the hardly opened shoots and often stripping a plant's appearance for an entire growing season.
• When the larvae are ready to pupate, ants such as Prenolepis longicornis, Monomorium speculare and a newly described Crematogaster species drive them down the cycad stems into nests, where they transform into smooth, fuscous pupae.
• The Plains Cupid flies in both wet and dry seasons, but the dry-season form shows duller male wing colours and a broader blue suffusion on female forewings, extending to three-quarters of the wing length.

Sources

Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.

• Wikipedia

At a glance

About the Plains Cupid

In the scorching expanse of sun-baked grasslands, the Plains Cupid butterfly dances on iridescent wings, its delicate form belied by a resilient spirit that has adapted to the harsh rhythms of its environment. As it flutters from bloom to bloom, its path is a mesmerizing zigzag of color and light, weaving an intricate tapestry of life amidst the tall grasses and wildflowers. With each beat of its wings, the Plains Cupid embodies the ephemeral beauty of the natural world, a fleeting yet unforgettable glimpse of wonder in the wild.

More insects and spiders to discover

Browse Feravox