Genus Heliconius

Classification · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Range · Food · Life Cycle · Remarks · Works Cited

Zebra longwing pupa - Heliconius charithonia

Red dots on Zebra Longwing - Heliconius charithonia

butterfly black yellow Charleston - Heliconius charithonia

Zebra Longwing_Heliconia charithonia - Heliconius charithonia

Show images of: caterpillars · adults · both

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)

Superfamily Papilionoidea (Butterflies and Skippers)

Family Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)

Subfamily Heliconiinae (Heliconians and Fritillaries)

Tribe Heliconiini (Longwings or Heliconians)

Genus Heliconius

Explanation of Names

Heliconius Kluk 1780

Numbers

~40 spp. total

Range

neotropical genus ranging into so.US

Food

Passiflora(1)

Larvae are cannibalistic and consume nearby eggs.(1)

Life Cycle

The long life cycle of this butterfly is attributed to their pollen feeding. The nitrogenous compounds of pollen also influence its reproductive strategy.(2)

Remarks

A Heliconius male with one spermatophore provides enough nitrogen to supply 15-30 eggs.(1)

Protrusion on the stipules and meristems of Passiflora look like eggs of Heliconius butterflies, who are the primary herbivores on these plants. These egg mimics reduce the number of oviposition sites.(1)

Females of this species at first encounter with a host plant associate the shape of the leaves with their chemistry and afterwards search for the same leaf shape.(3)

Works Cited

1.	Insect Ecology: Behavior, Populations and Communities P. W. Price, R. F. Denno, M. D. Eubanks. 2011. Cambridge University Press.

2.	Interrelationship Between Insects and Plants Pierre Jolivet. 1998. CRC Press.

3.	Insect-Plant Biology L.M. Schoonhoven, T. Jermy, and J.J.A. Van Loon. 1998. Chapman and Hall.

Contributed by Troy Bartlett on 16 February, 2004 - 12:32pm
Additional contributions by v belov, Marci Hess
Last updated 11 September, 2023 - 9:20am

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