A White M Hairstreak (Parrhasius m-album) was hanging out upside-down on a camphor leaf. This species is named for the curious white marking on the underside of their hind wing. Just above the letter ‘M’ is a red eye-spot and little hair-like appendages that look a bit like antenna. When perching these butterflies move their wings up and down so the hair-like appendages move to attract a predator's attention to the end of their body rather than their head. A predator strike at the end of the wings is far more survivable than one aimed at their real head.
The topsides of their wings are a brilliant reflective blue edged in black. Look for this species in the woods, especially in oak hammocks as their larva feed on live oak (Quercus virginiana) and other oak species.
UF has some great photos of the whole lifecycle of this species on their website.
Carolina Nature has some excellent photos of butterflies of this species.
No comments:
Post a Comment
We welcome your participation! Please note that while lively discussion and strong opinions are encouraged, the MOSI BioWorks Butterfly Garden reserves the right to delete comments that it deems inappropriate for any reason. Comments are moderated and publication times may vary.