Autecology of the yellow pansy butterfly Junonia hierta Fabricus (Lepidoptera: Rhopalocera: Nymphalidae) from Southern Andhra Pradesh

Abstract

The life history of the yellow pansy butterfly Junonia hierta (Fabaricus) and its larval performance in terms of food consumption and utilization, length of life cycle on its host plant Barleria montana are described for the first time. The Yellow Pansy, Junonia hierta is a species of Nymphalid butterfly usually seen in open scrub and grassland habitats. The study was conducted during January to December 2013 at Sri Lankamalleswara reserve forest (790 07’ – 780 80’ E) and Kadapa (14o 47' N and 78 82' E) of Southern Andhra Pradesh. Junonia hierta completes its life cycle in 20-26 days (eggs 3, larvae, 15 – 16, and pupa 5 – 7 days). The values of nutritional indices across the instars were AD (approximate digestibility) 43.75 – 95.49%; ECD (efficiency of conversion of digested food) 1.32 – 33.85%; ECI (efficiency of conversion of ingested food) 1.50 – 14.80%, measured at the temperature of 28 ± 20 C and RH of 80 ± 10% in the laboratory. These relatively high values of ECD and ECI explain partially the ecological success of Junonia hierta in the present study environment.