Under Cover of Darkness, Caterpillars Take Flight: The Immature Stages and Feeding Ecology of the Glasswinged Butterfly, Oleria baizana in Eastern Ecuador

Abstract

This paper describes the morphology and behavior of the immature stages of Oleria baizana (Haensch) (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) from northeastern Ecuador. Brugmansia aurea Lagerh. (Solanales: Solanaceae) is the larval food plant. Eggs are laid singly, off of the host plant in the leaf litter. During the night, larvae climb a food plant seedling and sever a leaf petiole, parachuting with the leaf to the ground where they remain while feeding. Oleria baizana has five larval stadia, and individuals take 77 days to mature from oviposition to adult stage.