Category: Poanes_melane

Various Butterfly Sightings at Albany Hill

6/20/2017

We found mating umber skippers (Poanes melane), common checkerspot skippers (Pyrgus communis) and gray hairstreaks (Strymon melinus) at Albany Hill (Albany, California).

Once it hits summertime, we get all kinds of these common little prairie butterflies. Umber skippers (Poanes melane) are the most common skipper and gray hairstreaks (Strymon melinus) are the most common hairstreaks and we have been seeing many of them at Albany Hill these days. In fact, we witnessed two umber skippers in copula, the only ever natural butterfly pairing we have ever observed besides monarchs (Danaus plexippus). They must male must have been "done" by the time we got there because they separately promptly after taking the photograph.

We also spotted some common checkerspot skippers (Pyrgus communis) two days ago, which, despite its name isn't actually that common here. Like the gray hairstreaks, it is a mallow (Malva) feeder which is where we discovered them. They were quite likely females looking to oviposit, but from a brief glance we couldn't find any eggs. Later in the season (August to September), however, they should be very easy to find. Alas, we would be in Ithaca by then.

Authors
Brian Liang

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Umber Skippers at Albany Hill

6/15/2017

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We have been observing countless umber skippers (Poanes melane) at Albany Hill.

Why are there so many?

Authors
Brian Liang

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Poanes melane Rearing Notes (3/8/17-3/11/17)

3/11/2017

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Rearing notes for our umber skippers (Poanes melane). These were found as eggs and reared on Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon).

Rearing Notes 3/8/17-3/11/17:

3/11:

The final pupa eclosed; officially finished with this brood
The wild population do not seem to be in flight yet, but as the weather warms up they should be out very soon and this will become our every day lawn skipper again

3/8:

It seems the second wave of pupa are beginning to eclose now; three have done so in the past few days and were promptly released as the weather has finally begun to warm up

Authors
Alan Liang

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Poanes melane Rearing Notes (1/28/17-2/25/17)

2/25/2017

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Rearing notes for our umber skippers (Poanes melane). These were found as eggs and reared on Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon).

Rearing Notes 1/28/17-2/25/17:

2/25:

Another eclosed

2/23:

Another eclosed but is slightly crippled (mid and right photos); non-crippled one from yesterday on left

2/22:

Another eclosed

2/14:

Released the four most recently eclosed adults

2/13:

Two more eclosed

2/10:

A male eclosed

2/6:

Another female eclosed and expanded its wings properly

2/1:

Another female eclosed; as this is the fourth eclosion already, it is likely none of the remaining pupae are in diapause and will eclose soon as well; unsure if the pupal stage is not the overwintering stage for P. melane or if it was simply indoor rearing conditions of the larvae that induced non-diapausing pupae

1/30:

Another female eclosed; wings slightly bent

1/29:

A female eclosed and was released

- Alan

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P. melane Rearing Notes (1/12/17-1/22/17)

1/22/2017

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Rearing notes for our umber skippers (Poanes melane). These were found as eggs and reared on Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon).

Rearing Notes 1/12/17-1/22/17:

1/22:

Another few prepupae pupated, and another few prepupae have spun cocoons
Posed a shot of the male on an orchid

1/21:

Here is the fully tanned pupa that pupated on 1/19

1/20:

Surprise! One of the pupa (probably several weeks old) eclsoed into a male today; we couldn't even tell that the pupa was pharate at all, probably because the brown wings do not contrast well with the black cuticle of the cuticle

1/19:

Two of the prepupae pupated; teneral pupae are bright yellow, turning pinkish dorsally before fully tanning into black

1/14:

Last minute macro shots of the last remaining fifth instar and some prepupae before they pupate; close examination of the cocoon reveals that the prepupae incorporate the waxy white substance (secreted on the ventral posterior abdomen) into the silk to strengthen it
Unusual how multiple prepupae sometimes aggregate in the same area when spinning their cocoon

1/12:

The last of the larvae are becoming prepupae
Close-up of pupa head reveals an extremely complex design and a surprising amount of setae

- Alan

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P. melane Chrysalis Rearing Notes (12/17/16-12/26/16)

12/26/2016

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Rearing notes for umber skipper (Poanes melane) chrysalises that were originally obtained as eggs laid by two wild caught females in captivity or found on various wild grasses in the Albany Eastside Permaculture Garden.

Rearing notes 12/17/16-12/26/16:

12/26:

Three pupated successfully today, probably the last three in a while since the others still seem to be feeding (first individual to pupate in the morning shown in last two rows, second in the morning in the middle to rows, and the last at noon in the first two rows)
Unfortunately, the second one to pupate on 12/16 was found to be dead today; it had become very soft and a thick dark brown liquid spewed out when it was touched

12/23:

Sadly, two prepupae mismolted this morning because they got caught in their own silk; we have carefully removed the silk from the other prepupae to try to prevent this from happening again

12/22:

Total of six prepupae now; for some reason they are attracted to where others have started building their cocoons so now they are all clumped up together in a very large mess of silk!

12/20:

The prepupae shown in the third row of 12/19 is shown on again here on the top row, just about to pupate
The other prepupal caterpillars have been hard at work at their cocoons shown in bottom left
Bottom right shows how a prepupal caterpillar spreads a white waxy substance located on the last two abdominal segments around the cocoon

12/19:

The top row shows a fifth instar that has recently entered the prepupal stage
Second row shows two caterpillars building a large cocoon around the both of them. . .
Third row shows a prepupa well into development that will likely pupate within the next two days

12/18:

Total of four prepupae now

12/17:

Photos of the two chrysalises in natural light (first individual shown in first seven; second individual shown in last five)
After completing tanning, the abdomen has turned a slightly yellowish brown and the black dots are more obvious as a result; the hair is also much more visible now
Two more fifth instars are ready to build their cocoons

- Brian

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Umber Skipper Caterpillar Builds Cocoon

12/12/2016

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The first of a large batch of umber skipper (Poanes melane) caterpillars that were orginally collected as eggs or immature larvae on grasses has built a cocoon.

After 29 days since we had our first umber skipper molt to the fifth and final instar, we have our first one to complete building a cocoon. What a frighteningly long wait for these guys! 29 days is quite an unexpectantly long interval for this instar, considering that the caterpillars are so small (relatively, that is, to some other genera) and they typically have many broods throughout the year. And the grasses that they eat shouldn't be the worst host plant ever; they should be quite nutritious even at this time of year. The caterpillars appeared to grow to maximum size in only about a week or so but then seemed to stall indefinitely!

The fact that it has been cooler in recent weeks is definitely a contributing factor to this slow growth (assuming that it is slower than normal growth). But what may also be a factor is disease, which, in hindsight was more or less inveitable given our situation and season. The cold, the extremely high humidity in the closed container and the house in general (due to rain), the lack of air flow, and the poor quality of the leaf cuttings that were only changed 2-4 times a week certainly took a toll on the caterpillars as the weeks went by. We had our first caterpillar fall from what appeared to be disease a few weeks ago and since them we have had a couple more deaths already. We believe that it is highly likely that some of the caterpillars that appear to be healthy are already infected and this is what is affecting their growth in a negative way. Like people, the caterpillars do have immune systems that can handle disease to an extent so sometimes even infected individuals can sometimes survive to adulthood but will still display temporary symptoms like the stalled growth.

However, potential disease factors aside, the most likely culprit is probably what they are eating. Grasses are notorious for containing very little nutrients, much less when compared to flowering plants. It is not uncommon for grass eating species to take a few months to complete development, so the two months it took our umber skippers to grow is nowhere near out of the ordinary. On top of that, almost all skippers including the umber skipper are supposed to diapause in the larval stage until spring and it is possible that things got a bit complicated because of this. Clearly, the ones that have already pupated did not go into diapause, probably due to indoor conditions, but they may have been slightly confused nonetheless.

The cocoon that was finally spun today may not be complete, but it was holding together enough so that we could pull it off the petri dish (it was attached to it on one side) and reveal the silk work. The cocoon is essentially a clump of grass blades stuck together with a layer of soft white silk (removing the grass will break the cocoon). It is quite thin so in some places the caterpillar inside is still somewhat visible. It actually doesn't appear to be quite that much different than the silken nests that the caterpillars regularily make to rest in or to molt; the only difference is that it is definitivly thicker now. However, one interesting thing to note about it is that there are is a pile of messy silken balls on one side (shown in the bottom middle and left). We aren't even exactly sure that stuff is silk. It actually resembles the white powders clumps on the last two abdominal segments of the fifth instar caterpillars (see rearing notes 12/1/16-12/11/16) when it is rubbed off. Perhaps we will get some more insight on this when a few more build their cocoons.

- Brian

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P. melane L5 Rearing Notes (12/1/16-12/11/16)

12/11/2016

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Rearing notes for umber skippers (Poanes melane) that were obtained as eggs laid by two wild caught females in captivity or found on various wild grasses in the Albany Eastside Permaculture Garden.

Rearing notes 12/1/16-12/11/16:

12/11:

A second fifth instar has now become a prepupa

12/10:

It has begun to to build a loose cocoon using the grass blades in the petri dish

12/9:

The prepupae is now very short, fat, and hard; the skin a whitish color with a yellow-brown undertone
It has made a lot of silk around it, shown in the bottom left (it was difficult to take pictures of it because of this, which is why there have been none for the past three days); we removed it from the rest of the caterpillars and put it in a petri dish
We have just noticed today that the fifth instar caterpillars all have a coating of a thick, white, waxy powder on the two last abdominal segments; this is a sure sign that they are going to pupate soon because they use the stuff to help keep their cocoons waterproof and only start developing it late in the last instar

12/6:

Turning browner

12/5:

We finally have one fifth instar that appears to have entered the prepupal stage; it is shown in all of the images above except the top left which contrasts it with a more normal looking mature fifth instar; it appears shorter and fatter than normal and seems to be turning brown
The mature fifth instar in the top left has a mass of 0.5 grams

12/4:

No progress is being made in development that we are aware of!

12/3:

Many very large, healthy individuals still, as of now, but still no sign of pupation in almost three weeks since the first one molted to fifth instar

12/1:

We found a fourth star in apolysis for fifth as well as a newly molted fifth instar dead today
The cause of death for the fourth instar is very strange; it seems as though it may have been somehow squished in strange positions within its own silken grass blade chamber. . . perhaps mismolt?
The fifth instar seems to have died of a similar cause as the other fifth instar that died a few days ago, which could be very serious if it really is a disease going around

- Brian

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P. melane L5 Rearing Notes (11/13/16-11/30/16)

11/30/2016

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Rearing notes for Umber Skippers (Poanes melane) that were obtained as eggs laid by two wild caught females in captivity or found on various wild grasses in the Albany Eastside Permaculture Garden.

Rearing notes 11/13/16-11/30/16:

11/30:

The largest individuals aren't growing a lot while the younger individuals are slowly catching up, so now at least half of them are fifth instar but none have pupated after almost three weeks

11/29:

For some reason we are noticing that the larger individuals tend to be less green than the smaller individuals, but this still doesn't seem at all to be a sign of entering the prepupal stage

11/28:

Many of the fifth instars look like they are more or less completely grown but we have yet to identify any signs that they are going to pupate; overall, they are still active and eating each day but not gaining any significant size

11/27:

We found a mysterious death today that we suspect was the very yellow one
The way that the body seemed to be decomposing at a frighteningly quick rate makes us think that the culprit might be disease perhaps due to the high humidity in the closed container and too much frass; however, disease usually wipes out many individuals at once and rarely only a single individual so this is puzzling

11/26:

This is getting rather boring!

11/25:

Looks just about full grown but still no signs. . .

11/24:

Growth has seemed to have stopped for the most part but none are showing any signs of pupation yet (supposedly, like most skippers (Hesperiidae), these umber skippers should change color prior to pupation)

11/23:

The two largest shown here, yellow one on top and a more normal colored individual on bottom; both are getting quite plump

11/22:

The yellow one is turning an even darker, brown shade but this doesn't seem to be a sign of becoming a prepupa. . . it is just strange!

11/21:

That's a lot of caterpillars!

11/19:

Perhaps it is nearing the end of the instar now (almost ready to pupate)

11/18:

Getting even plumper; growth seems to have finally started to pick up speed (as expected in the last instar)

11/17:

Quite a bit plumper now; as the skin stretches it has become more translucent again so the body now has a slightly turquoise undertone to it

11/15:

Not a lot of growth yet; these skippers seem to be very slow growing despite their small size and what seems to be a good host plant

11/13:

First one to reach fifth instar; its head capsule is now light brown and the skin seems thick and not as translucent (though this may be because it has just molted and the skin has not yet stretched)

- Brian

Comments

P. melane L4 Rearing Notes (10/30/16-11/12/16)

11/12/2016

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Rearing notes for a few Umber Skippers (Poanes melane) that were obtained as eggs laid by two wild caught females in captivity or found on various wild grasses in the Albany Eastside Permaculture Garden.

Rearing notes 10/30/16-11/12/16:

11/12:

Finally, today it has become quite evident that a few of the older ones, including the very yellow one (bottom row) have entered apolysis for fifth instar since their head capsules have slid off

11/11:

They like to fling their frass away from them, probably to confuse predators that use frass to detect caterpillars

11/10:

Some of them are starting to look like they are approaching the end of this instar; they have grown to be quite plump (not so long and skinny like some lower instars) and the head capsule is relatively small

11/9:

When frightened, they will immediately curl themselves up (top left)

11/8:

Not much growing since yesterday

11/7:

A lot have molted to fourth instar now, all of which are very green like the one shown in bottom right; it is still only the first one that molted that is very strangely yellow colored for some reason

11/5:

The fourth instar is more yellow than before
A second fourth instar that molted recently is shown in bottom right; it is much more greenish with a darker head, resembling previous instars much more than the other fourth instar does (perhaps just variation?)

11/4:

Grouped all of our caterpillar together today while we were changing; they are all different ages and sizes

11/3:

Finally seems to have grown a bit; it has actually taken on a more yellowish color (the actual skin must be yellowish and not completely translucent now)

11/2:

Still hasn't grown very much, though it does seem healthy and is eating

11/1:

Hasn't grown very much
As the overall group of caterpillars (100+) grows bigger, they are becoming more destructive of the pile of grass we put in the container each day!
Bottom right compares the fourth instar Umber Skipper caterpillar to a fifth instar Common Checkered Skipper (Pyrgus communis)

10/31:

A little greener in color, but as shown in the picture, the green appears to be striped

10/30:

First one molted to fourth instar today
Its head capsule is very light grayish brown color rather than black and the details are visible
It appears very pale in color since it hasn't eaten in several days

- Brian

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