Gonepteryx cleopatra

Cleopatra Brimstone ( Gonepteryx cleopatra )

The Cleopatra Brimstone ( Gonepteryx cleopatra ), also called Mediterranean Brimstone, is a butterfly ( butterfly ) of the family of White (Pieridae ).

Appearance, relationship and name

The name Cleopatra butterfly is indeed in the German literature called but not used consistently. Alternatively, the butterfly is also called "Southern Brimstone ", according to his closest relatives, the Brimstone.

The Cleopatra butterfly is regularly the same as the Brimstone. Only the Canarian subspecies are usually much larger ( forewing length 30-35 mm instead of 25-30 mm). From Brimstone, the Cleopatra butterfly is different on the front wings and the general overall more outwardly curved, fuller wing section in the male by the orange -red color. However, the color is more whitish- green, with a yellowish color copies belong to the subspecies massiliensis Foulquier = italica Gerhard (often in the Aegean Sea ). The caterpillar of the Cleopatra butterfly is stronger and more blue-gray in color than that of the domestic brimstone butterfly.

The English and Spanish name of the butterfly is "Cleopatra", the French " Citron de Provence ".

Occurrence and life

The Cleopatra butterfly is actually a Mediterranean type, which is rather rare in Central Europe. Widespread it is in the canton of Ticino, in Spain, Portugal, southern France, Italy and the Balkans, Greece and Turkey eastward to Syria and on the Mediterranean islands. In the Canaries different subspecies are native. Actual origin is, however, north-west Africa north of the Sahara (type locality: Algeria). Interestingly, the moth comes in Egypt - despite its name - not before.

The butterfly inhabits open, rocky terrain, and rich bush to bush to clear forests to 1200, a maximum altitude of 1600 meters, in North Africa and up to 3000 meters. It appears that overwinters as moths in a generation starting in May or June (later at high altitudes ). The partly locally specified second generation is doubted. The forage crops are buckthorn species.

Subspecies

We distinguish the following sub- types:

• G. c. cleopatra (Linnaeus, 1767) - represents the nominate
• G. c. maderensis Fields 1862 - native to Madeira - has the special feature that the lower wing of the females does not reflect UV light for camouflage against predators. Males are extended orange. However, they more closely resemble the nominate as the Canary subspecies.
• G. c. Cleobule Hübner 1825 - Tenerife
• G. c. palmae trunk 1963 - La Palma
• G. c. eversi Rehnelt 1974 - La Gomera

The Canarian subspecies are larger and sometimes even deeper reddish color than the other subspecies. The generation time of these durable, almost diapausefreien subspecies is unclear.