Phaon Crescent

The Phaon Crescent (Phyciodes phaon) butterfly is a common sight in Florida yards and roadsides. The adult butterflies can be found wherever this is a large patch of Frogfruit (Phyla nodiflora) to be found. The diminutive flowers on the Frogfruit provide nectar for the tiny adult  butterflies and the foliage is a host for their larvae.

Phaon Crescents are closely related to the slightly larger Pearl Crescent (Phyciodes tharos) butterfly but the Phaon Crescent is only found across the southern portions of North America and along the Eastern seaboard.

Phaon crescents lay their eggs in clusters on the undersides of a leaf and their young may all hatch at one time into a fantastic wriggling mess of caterpillars. Young caterpillars are gregarious and will feed together for the first part of their lives. This is the first time we have tried our hand at rearing these tiny darlings so I’ll be sure to post updates as we go.

The Genus Phyciodes is commonly known as Crescents and lists 18 species found in North and South America. Most species are highly spotted, variable in pattern and some are sexually dimorphic which means that males and females may have different markings or colors. The name Phyciodes may derive from the Greek word “phykos” which means painted or covered with cosmetics.

As for the species epithet, in Greek mythology Phaon was an old and ugly boatman who ferried Aphrodite a far distance and would accept no payment from the goddess. In exchange for his services, Aphrodite presented Phaon with an ointment that gave him back his youth and made him beautiful.

Photo credit: Adult Phaon Crescent photographed by Melanie Long