Chlosyne nycteis

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Silvery Checkerspot
Dorsal view
Underside
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Nymphalidae
Genus: Chlosyne
Species: C. nycteis
Binomial name
Chlosyne nycteis
(Doubleday, 1847))
Subspecies
  • Chlosyne nycteis drusius (Edwards, 1884)
  • Chlosyne nycteis reversa (F. & R. Chermock, 1940)
Synonyms
  • Melitaea nycteis
  • Charidryas harrisii
Common names
Silvery Checkerspot

The Silvery Checkerspot (Chlosyne nycteis) is a species of Nymphalinae that occurs in North America.

Description

Adult

The dorsal view is pale yellow-orange with dark borders and markings. The hindwing has a white centered submarginal spots on both sides, dorsal and ventral. The hindwing is pale and has a white crescent at the margin.

Caterpillar

The caterpillar is almost all black with dusted white spots. Sometimes they have a yellow-orange stripe or two smaller stripes along the side. The Nymphalidae family is known for its branched spines.

Range & Habitat

Their range consist of southern Canada south to Georgia and Texas, but does not occur in the Costal Plains. Silvery Checkerspots enjoy moist areas such as streamsides. They can also be seen in meadows and forest openings.

Life cycle

In the northern portion of its habitat there is one brood between June and July, for the remainder of its range there are two broods from May to September. There have often been recorded three broods in the deep southern part of Texas. Females lay eggs in batches which there can be up to 100 individuals. Early instar caterpillars stay in groups as they skeletonize leaves while the third-instar hibernates.

Larval foods

Adult foods

References

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