Lycorea ilione, the clearwing mimic queen is a species of Nymphalidae butterfly in the subfamily Danainae. The species was first described by Pieter Cramer in 1775.
Subspecies
Subspecies include:
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Lycorea ilione albescens (Distant, 1876); present in Mexico and Central America to Panama.
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Lycorea ilione decolorata (Haensch, 1909); present in Ecuador
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Lycorea ilione ilione (nominate); present in Brazil
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Lycorea ilione lamirus (Latreille, 1817); present in Peru
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Lycorea ilione suffusca Winhard, 2019;
[ Butterflies of America. Retrieved Dec 13, 2024.] present in Colombia
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Lycorea ilione phenarete (Doubleday, 1847); present in Bolivia and Peru
Distribution and habitat
This species is present in Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil, Bolivia and Peru.[ It occurs in the transitional rainforest and cloudforest, at an elevation of above sea level.][. Butterflies of the Amazon and Andes. Learn About Butterflies. Retrieved July 5, 2020.]
Description
Lycorea ilione can reach a wingspan of about . It is an extremely variable species. These large and strongly marked butterflies show yellow-tipped antennae and black thorax with white dots and gray abdomen. All wings are rounded, with forewings much longer than the hindwings and with concave inner edge. The wings are transparent, bordered with black, with black veins and dark bands dividing the wings into several areas. Some subspecies are brown with brown basal part of the forewings.
Biology
The larvae mainly feed on Ficus species ( Ficus benjamina, Ficus carica and Ficus pumila), but also on Jacaratia hasslerina, Carica papaya and Myoporum lactum.[ Males feed on Senecio, Eupatorium and Neomiranda flowers from which they obtain alkaloids used for chemical defense, as these toxins cause nausea in birds that prey them.][
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