Starr County Butterflies

Eggs, 4-27-13

First instar, 5-1-13

     

Second instar, 5-4-13

     

Third instar is now 4mm, 5-7-13

     

Fourth instar, 5-9-13

     

Final instar, 5-15-13

 

Chrysalis, 5-17-13

 

Fresh Empress Leilia, 5-23-13
 

I caught a female Empress Leilia on April 23 and placed her in my greenhouse with a potted Desert Hackberry (Celtis ehrenbergiana) tree. I found eggs on April 26, so I released the female.

The caterpillars emerged on May 1. In the first instar they had black heads. In the second instar the head became somewhat knobby; the knobbiness was most pronounced in the third instar. Normally, Emperors have five instars. If there was a fifth instar, I missed the molt to the fourth. If on this occasion there were only four, then the last two caterpillar pictures are of the same instar.

The focal caterpillar took 17 days to pupate; the adult emerged six days later.

Caterpillar comparison of the three common Asterocampa species found in Starr County.

Empress Leilia Page