Eueides procula(Eueides procula)
Phylum —arthropoda
Class —insecta
Order — lepidoptera
Family —nymphalidae
Genus –eueides
Appearance
The caterpillars are black or dark brown on the top and light green at the bottom, with an orange spot on the back of the body and white dorsal stripes. There is a yellow stripe on the side. They are covered with long spikes. There are two long black horns on the head.
The wingspan of this butterfly is about 72-74 mm. The wings are elongated, the forewings are black or dark brown, with white and yellowish spots. The hindwings are orange, edged with blackcolor. The coloration differs in different subspecies of the butterfly.
Habitat
Eueides procula is distributed from Central America to the North Andes.
Behavior
The butterflies are active at dusk. They spend the night under the leaves.
Caterpillars are gregarious in small groups.
Diet
Eueides procula larvae feed primarily on plants from the genus Passiflora from the subgenus Granadilla section Quadrangulares, Digitales, and Laurifoliae.
Butterflies feed on nectar.
Reproduction
For their reproduction you need a terrarium with a size of 50 x 50 x 70 cm. Females usually place eggs singly under older leaves of the host plant. Eggs cream colored and approximately 0.8 x 0.8 mm (h x w). The incubation period is 3-5 days.It is better to keep the caterpillars in plastic containers closed with a grid, each container should have 6-8 caterpillars.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 keeper should maintain the temperature of22-25 oCand the level of the humidity 65-75%. The caterpillar develops for 16-20 days. The pupae are greenish-white, with long spines on the dorsal side. The butterfly hatches during 11-14 days. The butterfly lives for about two weeks.
In captivity
The mesh cage 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 honey syrup diluted with boiled water in a ratio of 1: 10.