Fountainea Glycerium

Fountainea glycerium (Fountainea glycerium)

Phylum — arthropoda
Class — insecta
Order — lepidoptera
Family — nymphalidae

Genus – fountainea

Appearance

The caterpillar is covered with small pimples. The color is mottled, green with reddish-brown and white. There are small red-brown horns on the head. Before pupation, the caterpillar turns green.

The wingspan of this butterfly is 59-81 mm. The wings are orange with two black stripes near the outer edge of the forewings. The underside of the wings resembles a dry leaf in color and shape.

Habitat

Fountainea glycerium is found in Central and South America.

Behavior

Males often absorb mineralized moisture from the moist ground, or rest on the branches or foliage of trees.

Diet

The caterpillars feed on the leaves of croton from the family Euphorbiaceae.

Reproduction

For their reproduction you need a terrarium with a size of 50 x 50 x 70 cm. Females lay eggs one at a time on the leaves of the forage plant. The eggs are white. It is better to keep the caterpillars in plastic containers closed with a grid for 6-8 insects each. In the container, you need to place a forage plant. A wet paper towel is placed on the bottom, which must be replaced daily. The temperature is 22-25 ^oC at the humidity of 65-75%. The pupae are smooth, pale green with white.

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. Feed the butterflies with overripe fruits, such as a banana. You can offer them a few drops of honey syrup diluted with boiled water in a ratio of 1: 10.