''Catopsilia florella'', the African migrant, African emigrant, or common vagrant, is a

butterfly Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...

of the family

Pieridae The Pieridae are a large family (biology), family of butterflies with about 76 genera containing about 1,100 species, mostly from Afrotropical realm, tropical Africa and Indomalayan realm, tropical Asia with some varieties in the more northern ...

. It is found in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

(including

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

), Arabia (

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

) and the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...

. Like ''

Catopsilia pomona ''Catopsilia pomona'', the common emigrant or lemon emigrant, is a medium-sized Pieridae, pierid butterfly found in Asia and parts of Australia. The species gets its name from its habit of Lepidoptera migration, migration. Some early authors con ...

'', this species also has a habit of

migration Migration, migratory, or migrate may refer to: Human migration * Human migration, physical movement by humans from one region to another ** International migration, when peoples cross state boundaries and stay in the host state for some minimum le ...

. Many early authors mentioned the presence of this species in

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

; but those were probably due to confusion arises as '' Catopsilia pyranthe'' females exhibit a lot of seasonal variations. ''Catopsilia florella'' is not included as a species in India in any recent checklists. The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the opposite wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingsp ...

is 54–60 mm for males and 56–66 mm for females. Adults are on wing year-round. From South Africa, adults

migrate Migration, migratory, or migrate may refer to: Human migration * Human migration, physical movement by humans from one region to another ** International migration, when peoples cross state boundaries and stay in the host state for some minimum le ...

from summer to autumn. They fly in a north-eastern direction. The larvae feed on ''

Senna occidentalis ''Senna occidentalis'', commonly known as coffee senna, styptic weed, or septicweed, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is native to the southern United States of America, Mexico and South America. It is a shrub with Pin ...

'', '' Senna septentrionalis'', '' Senna petersiana'', '' Senna italica'', ''

Cassia javanica ''Cassia javanica'', also known as Java cassia, pink shower, apple blossom tree, rainbow shower tree, and Palawan cherry, is a species of tree in the family Fabaceae. Its origin is in Southeast Asia, but it has been extensively grown in tropical ...

'', and ''

Cassia fistula ''Cassia fistula'', also known as golden shower, purging cassia, Indian laburnum, kani konna, or pudding-pipe tree,U. S. Department of Agriculture, William Saunders; Catalogue of Economic Plants in the Collection of the U. S. Department of Agric ...

''.Martiré, J. & Rochat, D. (2008). ''Les Papillons de la Réunion & leurs chenilles.'' Biotope.

Gallery

File:BH013 Catopsilia florella & pyranthe FW.jpg File:African Migrant - Catopsilia florella.jpg File:African Migrants (Catopsilia florella) (16296693588).jpg File:A group of puddling African Migrants.JPG,

Mud-puddling Puddling is a behaviour in which an organism seeks out nutrients in certain moist substances such as rotting plant matter, mud, and carrion, and sucks up the fluid. Where the conditions are suitable, conspicuous insects such as butterfly, butterf ...

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

File:African emigrant (Catopsilia florella) mating migrant male (l) dry season female (r).jpg, mating migrant male (l) & dry season female (r),

Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

File:Egg of African Emigrant.jpg, Egg from United Arab Emirates File:Catopsiliaflorella.jpg, alt=Catopsilia florella from United Arab Emirates, from United Arab Emirates

References

Coliadinae Butterflies of Africa Lepidoptera of Cape Verde Butterflies described in 1775 Taxa named by Johan Christian Fabricius {{Pieridae-stub Butterflies of Asia