Phoebis philea, the orange-barred sulphur, is a species of butterfly found in the Americas including the Caribbean.[2]
| Phoebis philea | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Adult male - ventral view | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Pieridae |
| Genus: | Phoebis |
| Species: | P. philea |
| Binomial name | |
| Phoebis philea | |
| Synonyms | |
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The wingspan is 68 to 80 mm.[2] There are two to three generations per year in Florida and one in the northern part of the range with adults on wing from mid to late summer. The species habitat is in tropical scrub, gardens, fields, and forest edges. Orange-barred sulphurs are often found in large dense groups of mixed species, including the statira sulphur (Aphrissa statira), apricot sulphur (Phoebis argante), and the straight-line sulphur (Rhabdodryas trite).[3] The species eats nectar from red-colored plants.
The larvae feed on Cassia species.
Subspecies
- Phoebis philea philea (Linnaeus, 1763) (US to Brazil)
- Phoebis philea huebneri Fruhstorfer, 1907 (Cuba)
- Phoebis philea thalestris (Illiger, 1801) (Hispaniola)
Gallery
References
- P. Brock, Jim; Kaufman, Kenn (2003). Butterflies of North America. New York, New York: Houghtin Mifflin Company. p. 76. ISBN 0-618-25400-5.
- "Orange-barred Sulphur (Phoebis philea)". Learn Butterflies. 21 May 2024.