the lemon emigrant

lemon emigrant butterfly, western ghats

It is lemony, and it is a migrant. Migration could be one of its strategy to deal with adverse seasonal changes, like the tropical rainfall. It also exhibits seasonal dimorphism: dark yellow colors(form crocale) in wet summer season and pale yellow colors (form pomane) in dry winter season. It is one of the mechanisms by which insects cop up with adverse seasonal changes. It could be either to adjust body temperature and metabolic rate or as a means for better camouflage.

Such dimorphs can confuse observers into recording these 2 forms as different species.

Species: catopsilia pomona / catopsilia crocale
English: Common Emigrant, Lemon Emigrant
Location: Lonar, Buldhana, Maharashtra
Date: 21 Feb 2011

Note: It is probably a female in the image above.

Reference:
Rienks J., 1999: The lemon migrant, catopsilia pomona (pieridae). Biology of Australian butterflies, 135-142.

8 Responses

  1. Laurel says:

    I just found your website while looking for chicken scratch embroidery”, and then falling through the Internet Rabbit Hole, to end up with the “Lemon Emigrant.” I have a Victorian framed plaque of real butterflies, among them this Lemon fellow. Killing butterflies is not a good idea, but the framed one died more than a century ago. It’s nice to know from whence he came. Nice embroidery too.

    • rocksea says:

      Hi Laurel, these lemons move fast and are usually difficult to capture (on the camera). Good that you have a framed one to admire!

  2. sandeep says:

    indeed … lemon emigrant is a beautiful name 🙂 and very bright yellow too. the eyes seems to be a little out of focus, though.

    • rocksea says:

      yes it is the color which took our attention. these yellows are too fast for a click but somehow this one was basking in the morning sun. the eyes look focused in a higher resolution version.

  3. sarah says:

    Breeathing…. refreshing name for a hot afternoon.
    Has it travelled miles?

  4. Abhilash says:

    the picture looks really nice… good color blending…

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