Cethosia biblis
Encyclopedia
Cethosia biblis, common name Red Lacewing, is a species
of heliconiine
butterfly belonging to the Nymphalidae family.
reaching about 8–9 cm (3.1–3.5 ). In this species the sexes are dimorphic. In males the dorsal sides of the wings are bright orange-red, framed by a black outline with white spots. The undersides range from bright red to pale brown, interlaced by black and white. This astonishing pattern helps to disguise the shape of the butterfly, while the intense colour of the dorsal sides of the wings is a warning to predators that the Red Lacewing has a bad taste, deriving from the poisonous host plants of the caterpillars. The dorsal sides of the wings of the females are grayish-brownish with black spots and white bands and spots on the black margins.
Caterpillars have several reddish, black and white stripes, a black head and long black spikes that contain poison. In fact they mainly feed on poisonous climbing plants, mainly Passiflora species (Passiflora cochinchinensis, Passiflora moluccana, etc.).
and Nepal
, east to southern China
and the Philippines
, and south to Indonesia
.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of heliconiine
Heliconiinae
The Heliconiinae, commonly called heliconians or longwings, are a subfamily of the brush-footed butterflies . They can be divided into 45-50 genera and were sometimes treated as a separate family Heliconiidae within the Papilionoidea...
butterfly belonging to the Nymphalidae family.
Description
Cethosia biblis is medium-sized butterfly, with a wingspanWingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
reaching about 8–9 cm (3.1–3.5 ). In this species the sexes are dimorphic. In males the dorsal sides of the wings are bright orange-red, framed by a black outline with white spots. The undersides range from bright red to pale brown, interlaced by black and white. This astonishing pattern helps to disguise the shape of the butterfly, while the intense colour of the dorsal sides of the wings is a warning to predators that the Red Lacewing has a bad taste, deriving from the poisonous host plants of the caterpillars. The dorsal sides of the wings of the females are grayish-brownish with black spots and white bands and spots on the black margins.
Caterpillars have several reddish, black and white stripes, a black head and long black spikes that contain poison. In fact they mainly feed on poisonous climbing plants, mainly Passiflora species (Passiflora cochinchinensis, Passiflora moluccana, etc.).
Distribution
This species can be found from IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, east to southern China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, and south to Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
.
Subspecies
- Cethosia biblis biblis - ssam, C. India – SW. [[China]]
- Cethosia biblis insularis C. & R. Felder, 1861 - [[Philippines]] ([[Luzon]], [[Polillo]], ?Babuyanes)
- Cethosia biblis nicobarica Felder, 1862 - [[Nicobar]]?
- Cethosia biblis picta C. & R. Felder, [1867] - [[Sulawesi]]
- Cethosia biblis javana C. & R. Felder, [1867] - [[Java]]
- Cethosia biblis logani Distant, 1881 – E. [[Sumatra]]
- Cethosia biblis tambora (Doherty, 1891) - [[Sumbawa]]
- Cethosia biblis narmada Fruhstorfer, 1896 - [[Lombok]]
- Cethosia biblis narmadoides de Nicéville, 1898 - [[Bali]]
- Cethosia biblis perakana Fruhstorfer, 1902 – S. [[Thailand]], Peninsular MalayaMalaya-Geographic/former political entities:* The Malay Peninsula* Malay Archipelago, the broader macroregion.-Malaya including Singapore:* British Malaya , a loose collection of British-controlled states...
, Pulau Tioman - Cethosia biblis ceramensis Fruhstorfer, 1902 - SerangSerangSerang is a regency of Banten province, Indonesia. The administrative center of the regency and the capital of the province is the independent municipality of Serang...
- Cethosia biblis atia Fruhstorfer, 1905 - Kalao
- Cethosia biblis alceste Fruhstorfer, 1905 - BaweanBaweanBawean is an island of Indonesia located approximately 150 km north of Surabaya in the Java Sea, off the coast of Java. It is administered by Gresik Regency of East Java province. It is approximately 15 km in diameter and is circumnavigated by a single narrow road. Bawean is dominated by...
- Cethosia biblis hainana Fruhstorfer, 1908 - HainanHainanHainan is the smallest province of the People's Republic of China . Although the province comprises some two hundred islands scattered among three archipelagos off the southern coast, of its land mass is Hainan Island , from which the province takes its name...
- Cethosia biblis tisamena Fruhstorfer, 1912 - IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
- Cethosia biblis phanaroia Fruhstorfer - Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
- Cethosia biblis adantonia Fruhstorfer – W. SumatraSumatraSumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
- Cethosia biblis sumbana Pagenstecher - SumbaSumbaSumba is an island in eastern Indonesia, is one of the Lesser Sunda Islands, and is in the province of East Nusa Tenggara. Sumba has an area of 11,153 km², and the population was officially at 611,422 in 2005...
- Cethosia biblis floresiana Fruhstorfer - FloresFloresFlores is one of the Lesser Sunda Islands, an island arc with an estimated area of 14,300 km² extending east from the Java island of Indonesia. The population was 1.831.000 in the 2010 census and the largest town is Maumere. Flores is Portuguese for "flowers".Flores is located east of Sumbawa...
- Cethosia biblis sandakana Fruhstorfer - orneo, ?PalawanPalawanPalawan is an island province of the Philippines located in the MIMAROPA region or Region 4. Its capital is Puerto Princesa City, and it is the largest province in the country in terms of total area of jurisdiction. The islands of Palawan stretch from Mindoro in the northeast to Borneo in the...
- Cethosia biblis liacura Fruhstorfer - hilippines (MindanaoMindanaoMindanao is the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country, which consists of the island of Mindanao and smaller surrounding islands. The other two are Luzon and the Visayas. The island of Mindanao is called The...
) - Cethosia biblis tagalorum Fruhstorfer - hilippines (MindoroMindoroMindoro is the seventh-largest island in the Philippines. It is located off the coast of Luzon, and northeast of Palawan. The southern coast of Mindoro forms the northeastern extremum of the Sulu Sea.-History:...
) - Cethosia biblis togiana Fruhstorfer - Togian Is.
- Cethosia biblis buruana Holland - BuruBuruBuru is the third largest island within Maluku Islands of Malay Archipelago. It lies between the Banda Sea to the south and Seram Sea to the north, west of Ambon and Seram islands. The island belongs to Maluku province of Indonesia and includes the Buru and South Buru regencies...
- Cethosia biblis amboinensis C. & R. Felder, [1867] - AmbonAmbonAmbon may refer to:Places* Ambon Island, an island in Indonesia.* Ambon, Maluku, a city on the Ambon Island, the capital of Maluku .* Ambon, Morbihan, a commune in Morbihan, FranceOther...
- Cethosia biblis andamanica Stichel - AndamanAndaman IslandsThe Andaman Islands are a group of Indian Ocean archipelagic islands in the Bay of Bengal between India to the west, and Burma , to the north and east...
? - Cethosia biblis pemanggilensis Eliot, 1978 – Pemanggil