Caligo telamonius

Caligo telamonius (Caligo telamonius)

Phylum arthropoda
Class — insecta
Order — lepidoptera
Family — nymphalidae

Genus – caligo

Appearance

The younger caterpillars are yellowish-green, the older ones are brown with six long outgrowths on the back. There are 8 horns on the head. The caterpillars are covered with short hairs. They have a short double "tail".

The wingspan of this butterfly is 12-14 cm. The upperside of the forewings is yellow-brown, the hindwings are bluish-gray. There is one large eyespot on the underside of each hind wings. The hind wings of the males are fringed with hairs.

Habitat

Caligo telamonius is found in southern North America, Central America, and South America.

Behavior

Caligo telamonius is active in the morning and evening hours. The mating dance of the male is very beautiful. In nature the caterpillars harm banana plantations.

Diet

The caterpillars feed on the leaves of banana, canna, strelitzia, and heliconia.

Reproduction

For their reproduction you need a terrarium with a size of 70 x 70 x 90 cm at the temperature of 26-28 °C. Females lay eggs in groups of 10-12 on the leaves of the forage plant. Eggs are white and round. The incubation period is 9-10 days. Caterpillars from the same group hatch at the same time and try to stick together. During the day they sit on the lower part of the leaves, and at night they feed. The temperature for keeping is 26-28 °C and humidity is 70-75%. It is better not to transplant caterpillars from one plant to another and put them in a terrarium pot with a plant. The terrarium should be closed with a grid. The caterpillar develops for 40-50 days. The pupae are pale brown, the color is similar to a dry leaf. The pupa develops for 2-3 weeks. Adult butterflies live up to 2 months.

In captivity

The mesh terrarium with a size of 50 × 50 × 70 mm is suitable for keeping butterflies. Room temperature is necessary. Daylight time is 12 hours. You can feed the butterflies with an overripe banana, orange, pineapple, mango, or give them a few drops of honey syrup diluted with boiled water in a ratio of 1:10. You can give them a mixture of overripe banana, yogurt and orange juice.

 

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