Heteronympha merope

Heteronympha merope, the common brown, is a species of butterfly of the family Nymphalidae, endemic to the southern half of Australia. The wingspan is about 60 millimetres (2.4 in) for males and 70 mm (2.8 in) for females.

Heteronympha merope
Male
Female
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Lepidoptera
Family:
Nymphalidae
Genus:
Heteronympha
Species:
H. merope
Binomial name
Heteronympha merope
Fabricius, 1775
Synonyms
  • Satyrus archemor

The larvae feed on Poaceae species, including Brachypodium distachyon, Cynodon dactylon, Ehrharta erecta, Poa poiformis, Microlaena stipoides, Poa tenera and Themeda triandra.[1] The common brown butterfly is emerging ten days earlier than it did 65 years ago due to the effects of climate change.[2]

References
  1. Don Herbison-Evans & Stella Crossley (7 May 2008). "Heteronympha merope". University of Technology, Sydney. Retrieved 29 January 2009.
  2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 29 March 2010. Retrieved 25 March 2010.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  1. Schlossmann, Jessie. "Climate Change Causing Butterflies to Emerge Ten days Early". Australian Geographic 3-23-10
  2. South Australian Butterflies Data Sheet.


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