Vol. 6 No. 2 1995 SOURAKOV and EMMEL: Greta Life history 155 TROPICAL LEPIDOPTERA, 6(2): 155-157 LIFE HISTORY OF GRETA DIAPHANA FROM THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC (LEPIDOPTERA: NYMPHALIDAE) ANDREI SOURAKOV AND THOMAS C. EMMEL Dept. of Entomology and Nematology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611 Dept. of Zoology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA ABSTRACT.- The life history of Greta diaphana (Drury) (Ithomiinae) (assigned to ssp. charadra Schwartz) from the Cordillera Central in the Republica Dominicana. island of Hispaniola, is described, and its food plant, Cestrurn coelophlebium O. E. Schulz (Solanaceae) is reported. KEY WORDS: Caribbean, Central America, Costa Rica, Cuba, Episcada, eggs, Hispaniola, hostplants, Hymenitis, Hypoleria, Ithomiinae, Jamaica, larval morphology, Neotropical, pupae, Solanaceae, Trinidad, West Indies. Only 2 species of Ithomiinae clearwing butterflies occur in the FIRST INSTAR LARVA: The body is whitish when hatched (Fig. 4A), West Indies north of Trinidad. Both are in the genus Greta, turns greenish after feeding (Fig. 4B). Head is black, 0.45mm wide, 0.40mm high. The integument in this instar as well as in the later instars which is also known from mainland tropical America. Greta stays transparent, and the larva's green coloration results from the food cubana (Herrich-Schaffer) is restricted to the forested mountains ingested by larvae. First and later instars have a dark brown sclerotized of Cuba, Greta diaphana (Drury) has 5 named subspecies: one anal plate, bearing longer and tougher setae. The rest of the body bears on Jamaica, and four in different parts of the Dominican Republic short and thin, inconspicuous setae. The crochets are in biordinal (Schwartz, 1982). Aside from brief notes by Turner (published mesoseries. Legs and claws are light brown. The primery setae of the in Smith et al., 1994) on one pupa of G. diaphana diaphana from head capsule (Fig. IB) are still noticable among secondary setae of Jamaica, the immature stages of G. diaphana remain largely second and third instars (Fig. 1C). In later instars, setae are practically unknown. uniform. In April 1994 the senior author observed a female G. d. SECOND INSTAR (Fig. 4C): This stage resembles the first instar, except charadra Schwartz ovipositing on Cestrum coelophlebium O. E. for the new appearance of minute secondary setae. Head is 0.60mm Schulz (Solanaceae) on a mountainside above La Cienaga in La wide, 0.55mm high. THIRD AND FOURTH INSTARS (Fig. 4 D,E ): These two stages acquire Vega Province, Dominican Republic, at 1000m elevation. In three longitudinal stripes: a white medial stripe and a yellowish lateral September 1995, eggs and last instar larvae were collected from stripe above the spiracle line. Head capsules are similar in these instars the food plant in the vicinity of Mata Grande, Santiago Province, and are translucent white or light brown with numerous pigmented black at 1300m elevation, and subsequently raised. Both localities are spots which become more intensive in the occipital area and around the in the Cordillera Central. stemmata. There is a certain degree of variation in pigmentation of the The plants of Cestrum coelophlebium utilized by the butterfly head capsule and in some specimens it is almost entirely black. The typically are two to three feet high. The leaves of the foodplant head is 0.95mm wide, 0.75mm high in the third instar and 1.3mm wide, are green and leathery, except for the apical leaves, which are 1.05mm high in the fourth instar. soft and have a very distinct purple color. The female lays FIFTH INSTAR: The head capsule is 1.90mm wide, 1.62mm high. It is clusters of 20-30 eggs on the underside of the green leaves in the largely pigmented with the frontoclypeus and area just above frontocly- peal suture remaining white. The white area intergrades into a spotted upper part of the plant. Larvae remain gregarious until pupation, area, the width of which varies in different specimens (Fig 4F). The starting to feed on the apical leaves and subsequently moving later intergrades into a black area. The stemmatal area is always down the plant. This solanaceous host species is endemic to completely pigmented (Fig. 4G). The head is covered with short and Hispaniola (Walter Judd, pers. comm.). thin setae (Fig. 2A). The integument is almost completely pigmented. Immature stages are preserved at the University of Florida The spiracle line on each side is bordered by two wide yellow stripes. collection. A voucher specimen of the food plant is deposited in The white median stripe as well as both yellow stripes are bordered by the Herbarium of the University of Florida. black thin stripes, which represent unpigmented areas. The body bears numerous thin and short setae, which become long and thick in the anal DESCRIPTION OF IMMATURE STAGES area (Fig. 2B), posterior to the sclerotized triangular anal plate. EGG: The eggs are white, elongated and laid in clusters (Fig. 4J). PREPUPA: The prepupa is green, with just a trace of the supraspiracular They are 0.8 mm high and 0.6 mm wide. There are 17 thick vertical yellow stripe left (Fig. 4H). ribs and 12 thin transverse ribs which create a cell-like (reticulate) PUPA: The tiny pupa (Fig. 4J) is green with golden stripes along structure across the egg's surface which integrates into rosette-shaped costae, four golden marks on the wing, and golden eyepieces and horns. cells in the micropylar region (Fig. 1A). It is 9.5mm long and 5.0mm wide in its widest point. Distribution of 156 SOURAKOV and EMMEL: Greta Life history TROPICAL LEPIDOPTERA Fig. 2. Fifth instar larva: (A) Head and first thoracic segment; (B) Last abdominal segment. Fig. 3. Pupa (dots indicate location of golden pigment). DISCUSSION The genus Greta may have as many as 20 species (including some currently placed in Hypoleria and in Hymenitis by other authors; Mielke and Brown, 1979), yet only G. (H.) new (Hewit- son) has had extensive notes published on its life cycle (Young, 1972). Even this paper does not describe the egg, larva or pupa in detail, making it difficult to compare our observations on Greta diaphana. It is worth pointing out, that, unlike G. diaphana eggs and larvae of G. nero and other species in related genera are solitary (Young, 1973, 1978; DeVries, 1987). The mode of oviposition and appearance of immature stages of G. diaphana resemble those of Episcada salvinia (Bates), a member of a different ithomiine tribe which uses Solanum as a host (DeVries, 1987; confirmed by the senior author at Las Alturas, Costa Rica). Despite the fact that oviposition in clusters and gregarious larval behavior appears, probably independently, in different tribes of Ithomiinae, they might serve as sufficient characters foi placing G. diaphana into a separate genus. Fig. 1. Micrograph of (A) Egg (lOOx); (B) Head capsule of the first instar larva (200x); (C) Head capsule of the third instar larva (lOOx). ACKNOWLEDGMENTS golden pigment is shown with dots in Fig.3. We would like to thank Dr. Walter S. Judd of the University o DEVELOPMENT TIME: Total time of development from egg to adult at Florida for his help in identification of the food plant. Dr. Dale H 25°C in the laboratory is 30 days. The foodplant utilized was stored for Habeck and Dr. Lincoln P. Brower critically reviewed the manuscript. the whole period in a plastic bag in a refrigerator. Vol. 6 No. 2 1995 SOURAKOV and EMMEL: Greta Life history 157 Fig. 4. Life history of Greta diaphana on Oestrum coelophlebium (Solanaceae) (A) First instar larvae after hatching; (B) Larvae after three days of feeding; (C) Second instar larva; (D) Pharate and just molted fourth instar larvae; (E) Fourth instar larvae; (F) (G) Fifth instar larvae; (H) Prepupa; (I) Pupa; (J) Female ovipositing in the wild. •i^^^^^^^^^^^BBB^^B^^^^^^HBHMBBBMMBHBBMI^HH^BHBBM DeVries, P. J. 1987. The Butterflies of Costa Rica and their Natural History. Princeton: Princeton Univ. Pr. 326pp. Mielke, O. H. H., and K. S. Brown, Jr. 1979. Suplemento ao Catalogo dos Ithomiidae Americanos (Lepi- doptera) de Romualdo Ferreire D'Almeida (Nymphalidae: Ithomiinae). Curitiba: Centre de Recursos Audivisuais da UFR. 216pp. Schwartz, A. 1982. Variation in Hispaniolan Greta diaphana (Ithomiidae). Bull. Allyn Museum (Sarasota), 69:1-10. Smith, D. S., L. D. Miller, and J. Y. Miller 1994 The Butterflies of the West Indies and South Florida. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Pr. 255pp, 32 pi. Young, A. M. 1972. On the life cycle and natural history of Hymenitis nero Fig. 5. Adult ovipositing on hostplant. (Lepidoptera: Ithomiinae) in Costa Rica. Psyche (Cambridge, REFERENCES Ma), 79:284-294. 1973. The life history of Dircenia relata (Ithomiidae) in Costa Rica. J. Lepid. Soc. (Lawrence), 27:258-267. Brown, K. S., Jr. 1978. Notes on the biology of the butterfly Hypoleria cassotis 1994. Juvenile stages of Ithomiinae: overview and systematics (Bates) (Nymphalidae: Ithomiinae) in northeastern Costa Rica. (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae). Trap. Lepid. (Gainesville), 5:9- Brenesia (San Jose), 14-15:97-108. 20.