''Colias philodice'', the common sulphur or clouded sulphur, is a North American

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 ...

in 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 ...

, subfamily

Coliadinae Coliadinae, the sulphurs or yellows, are a subfamily of butterflies with about 300 described species. There are 36 species in North America, where they range from Mexico to northern Canada. In most species, males are easily distinguished from ...

Description

This species is a typical member of the genus. Both genders typically have pale yellow wings above with no traces of orange, unlike its close cousin the orange sulphur which may also be yellowish. Males have clean borders, while females have yellow dots within this region. Females sometimes exhibit a white form known as ''alba''. The underside of the male's wings is yellow while the female's is yellow or greenish white, and both have a doubled

hindwing Insect wings are adult outgrowths of the insect exoskeleton that enable insects to fly. They are found on the second and third thoracic segments (the mesothorax and metathorax), and the two pairs are often referred to as the forewings and hindw ...

spot trimmed in brownish red. The hindwings show a series of four small red spots along the outer third portion, a trait that distinguishes the other North America species such as '' Colias interior'', with exception of the orange sulphur which also shows them. Its wingspan is 32 to 54 mm. Colias philodice white form

; Form ''alba'' This species has white form ''alba'' which can be very common in some populations, while rare in others. It can be confused with other white forms of ''Colias'' particularly that of ''

Colias eurytheme ''Colias eurytheme'', the orange sulphur, also known as the alfalfa butterfly and in its larval stage as the alfalfa caterpillar, is a butterfly of the family Pieridae, where it belongs to the lowland group of " clouded yellows and sulphurs" sub ...

''. It can often be distinguished by the border pattern of both wings, though some individuals are impossible to separate without the presence of other "normal" specimens. Though they differ in flight style, the white forms of ''Colias'' may be confused with other pierids such as ''

Pieris rapae ''Pieris rapae'' is a small- to medium-sized butterfly species of the whites-and-yellows family Pieridae. It is known in Europe as the small white, in North America as the cabbage white or cabbage butterfly, on several continents as the small ca ...

'' and '' Pontia protodice''. White form males are also known, but they are exceedingly rare in this species.

Habitat

This butterfly may be encountered in fields, lawns, alfalfa or clover fields, meadows, and roadsides. Swarms of these butterflies will congregate at mud puddles. They range over most of North America with the exception of Labrador, Nunavut, and northern Quebec. They migrate every year.U. Florida. Featured Creatures. ''Colias philodice''
/ref>

Nectar plants

Clouded sulphurs

nectar Nectar is a viscous, sugar-rich liquid produced by Plant, plants in glands called nectaries, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollination, pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to an ...

at flowers such as milkweed (''

Asclepias ''Asclepias'' is a genus of herbaceous, perennial, flowering plants known as milkweeds, named for their latex, a milky substance containing cardiac glycosides termed cardenolides, exuded where cells are damaged. Most species are toxic to huma ...

'' species), butterfly bush (''

Buddleja ''Buddleja'' (; ''Buddleia''; also historically given as ''Buddlea'') is a genus comprising over 140 species of flowering plants endemicity, endemic to Asia, Africa, and the Americas. The generic name bestowed by Carl Linnaeus, Linnaeus posthu ...

'' species), coneflower (''

Dracopis ''Dracopis'' is a monotypic genus with ''Dracopis amplexicaulis'' (clasping coneflower; syn. ''Rudbeckia amplexicaulis'') the sole species. It is native to North America. It is an annual plant growing to 1 m tall, with simple or branched stems. ...

'', ''

Echinacea ''Echinacea'' is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants in the daisy family. It has ten species, which are commonly called coneflowers. They are native only in eastern and central North America, where they grow in wet to dry prairies and open ...

'', and ''

Rudbeckia ''Rudbeckia'' () is a plant genus in the Asteraceae or composite family. Rudbeckia flowers feature a prominent, raised central disc in black, brown shades of green, and in-between tones, giving rise to their familiar common names of coneflowers a ...

''), alfalfa (''

Medicago sativa Alfalfa () (''Medicago sativa''), also called lucerne, is a perennial flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. It is used for grazing, hay, and silage, as we ...

''), dandelion (''

Taraxacum ''Taraxacum'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, which consists of species commonly known as dandelions. The scientific and hobby study of the genus is known as taraxacology. The genus has a near-cosmopolitan distribu ...

'' species), clover (''

Trifolium Clovers, also called trefoils, are plants of the genus ''Trifolium'' (), consisting of about 300 species of flowering plants in the legume family Fabaceae originating in Europe. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution with the highest diversity ...

'' species), and tall verbena ('' Verbena bonariensis'') and many more.

Host plants

Ground-plum ('' Astragalus crassicarpus''), Platte River milk-vetch ('' Astragalus plattensis''), soybean (''

Glycine max The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean. Soy is a staple crop, the world's most grown legume, and an important animal feed. Soy is a key source of f ...

''), deer vetch ('' Lotus'' species), alfalfa (''

''), white sweet clover (''

Melilotus albus ''Melilotus albus'', known as honey clover, white melilot (UK), Bokhara clover (Australia), white sweetclover (US), and sweet clover, is a nitrogen-fixing legume in the family Fabaceae. ''Melilotus albus'' is considered a valuable honey plant ...

''), self-heal (''

Prunella vulgaris ''Prunella vulgaris'', the common self-heal, heal-all, woundwort, heart-of-the-earth, carpenter's herb, brownwort or blue curls, is a herbaceous plant in the mint family Lamiaceae. Description ''Prunella vulgaris'' grows high, with creeping, s ...

''), black locust (''

Robinia pseudoacacia ''Robinia pseudoacacia'', commonly known as black locust, is a medium-sized hardwood deciduous tree, belonging to the tribe Robinieae of the legume family Fabaceae. It is native to a few small areas of the United States, but it has been widely pl ...

''), white clover (''

Trifolium repens ''Trifolium repens'', the white clover, is a herbaceous perennial plant in the bean family Fabaceae (otherwise known as Leguminosae). It is native to Europe, including the British Isles, and central Asia and is one of the most widely cultivated ...

''), red clover (''

Trifolium pratense ''Trifolium pratense'' (from Latin prātum, meaning meadow), red clover, is a herbaceous species of flowering plant in the bean family, Fabaceae. It is native to the Old World, but planted and naturalised in many other regions. Description ...

''), vetch (''

Vicia ''Vicia'' is a genus of over 240 species of flowering plants that are part of the legume family (Fabaceae), and which are commonly known as vetches. Member species are native to Europe, North America, South America, Asia and Africa. Some other g ...

'' species).

Life cycle

The pale yellow eggs are laid singly on the

host plant In biology and medicine, a host is a larger organism that harbours a smaller organism; whether a parasitic, a mutualistic, or a commensalist ''guest'' (symbiont). The guest is typically provided with nourishment and shelter. Examples include a ...

s. The eggs turn red after a few days, then turn gray just before they hatch. The young

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

e will eat one another. The larva is green with a white stripe running along each side of the body. The white stripes may contain bars or lines of pink or orange. The green

chrysalis A pupa (; : pupae) is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their life cycle, the stages the ...

hangs up right by a

silk Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...

girdle A belt without a buckle, especially if a cord or rope, is called a girdle in various contexts, especially historical ones, where girdles were a very common part of everyday clothing from antiquity until perhaps the 15th century, especially for w ...

. Just before

eclosion A pupa (; : pupae) is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their life cycle, the stages th ...

, the chrysalis turns yellow with a pink "zipper".

Reproduction

Virgin females of Colias philodice differentiate conspecific males (C. philodice) from C. eurytheme males on the basis of scent. Receptivity is characterized by taking up a fixed position and holding the abdomen ventrally between hindwings, and receptivity is identified by copulation.

Gallery

File:Male Clouded Sulphur, Megan McCarty56.jpg, Male nectaring on

red clover ''Trifolium pratense'' (from Latin prātum, meaning meadow), red clover, is a herbaceous plant, herbaceous species of flowering plant in the bean family, Fabaceae. It is native to the Old World, but planted and naturalised in many other regions ...

File:Clouded Sulphur 1, Perth.jpg, Male showing red fringe File:Female Clouded Sulphur Megan McCarty42.jpg, Female specimen File:Albino Clouded Sulphur, MM158.jpg, Underside of a white form female File:Clouded sulphur butterfly on zinnia.jpg, Specimen nectaring on a

zinnia ''Zinnia'' is a genus of plants of the tribe Heliantheae within the family Asteraceae. They are native to scrub and dry grassland in an area stretching from the Southwestern United States to South America, with a centre of diversity in Mexic ...

in the

Southwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A '' compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west— ...

region of the U.S.

Similar species

* ''

'' – orange sulphur * '' Colias interior'' – pink-edged sulphur * ''

Phoebis sennae ''Phoebis sennae'', the cloudless sulphur, is a mid-sized butterfly in the family Pieridae found in the Americas. There are several similar species such as the clouded sulphur (''Colias philodice''), the yellow angled-sulphur (''Anteos maerula'' ...

'' – cloudless sulphur

References

External links

DOI:10.1007/BF00987523

Photos of adults and larva
*
Clouded sulphur
Canadian Biodiversity Information Facility

Red Planet Inc.

Fairfax County Public Schools

Nearctic.com {{Taxonbar, from=Q1345988 philodice Butterflies of North America Insects of the Arctic Butterflies described in 1819 Taxa named by Jean-Baptiste Godart Lepidoptera of Mexico Lepidoptera of the United States Lepidoptera of Canada