www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

I got some map butterfly pupae from WWB a few weeks ago and they have began to hatch. I got them form research and recoding their progress for my site, from egg to adult. Is this one the Autumn form? There seems to be more black than orange. (Sorry for poor pic, but I had to use flash and in my breeding tank, its hard to get a shot.)

Hi Dave,

This is the spring form (f. levana). See:

http://www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/species. ... r_name=Map

Cheers,

- Pete

Thought that, what does the Autumn form look like? I know is only sometimes it appears.

Also, one of my 10 died and the rest are hatching. Could someone tell me how to look after them and keep them alive when they just emerge until wings are fully hardened?

Hi Dave,

The autumn form (f. prorsa) is shown on the same page at:

http://www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/species. ... r_name=Map

If you're serious about breeding various species, then I suggest you get hold of:

Breeding Butterflies and Moths: A Practical Handbook for British and European Species (Practical Handbook British & E) (Paperback) by Ekkehard Friedrich (Author), A. Maitland Emmet (Editor), Steven Whitebread (Translator)

Some basics:

1. Give the adults plenty of space to emerge and inflate their wings. Give them at least 2 hours before disturbing them. Even better, let them fly before moving them.

2. Give the adults a food source. As well as flowers, you could try soaking a cotton wool pad soaked in a mix of 10 parts water, 1 part sugar.

3. Ensure the adults have a large flight cage containg a nectar source and larval foodplant (nettles in the case of the map). Replace the nectar source (if using cotton wool pads) once or twice a day.

4. Wait. You may be lucky enough to witness a pairing. You should find eggs laid in strings on the underside of a nettle leaf.

Cheers,

- Pete

Thanks Pete. I am creating a PDF on how it goes so I should have some good reports. I will get a few videos as well.

Just wondering if anyone knows any abberations of this butterfly or not? Just curious.