''Phyciodes batesii'', the tawny crescent, 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
Nymphalidae
The Nymphalidae are the largest family of butterflies, with more than 6,000 species distributed throughout most of the world. Belonging to the superfamily Papilionoidea, they are usually medium-sized to large butterflies. Most species ha ...
that occurs in North America.
Description
The upperside is dark brown with orange and the forewing has a pale postmedian band with submarginal bands. The female's black submarginal band has dots. Both sexes have black and white antenna knobs. The wingspan is from 25 to 38 mm.
Tawny Crescent
Butterflies of Canada
Life cycle
Adults fly once a year between May and July. There is sometimes a partial second brood in Michigan
Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
. During this time the females lay their eggs in groups on the host plants. The fourth-instar
An instar (, from the Latin '' īnstar'' 'form, likeness') is a developmental stage of arthropods, such as insects, which occurs between each moult (''ecdysis'') until sexual maturity is reached. Arthropods must shed the exoskeleton in order to ...
caterpillars hibernate.[
]
Larval foods
* '' Symphyotrichum undulatum''[
]
Adult foods
* Flower 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 ...
[
]
Similar species
*'' Phyciodes cocyta'' – northern crescent
*'' Phyciodes tharos'' – pearl crescent
References
*
"''Phyciodes'' Hübner, [1819]"
at Markku Savela's ''Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms''
*
Butterflies of North America">819]"">"''Phyciodes'' Hübner, [1819]"
at Markku Savela's ''Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms''
*
Butterflies of North America
Melitaeini
Taxa named by Tryon Reakirt
Butterflies described in 1865
{{nymphalinae-stub