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1958
The Lepidopterists' News
95
A BREEDING EXPERIMENT WITH PUPAL COLORATION OF EUREMA NICIPPE (PIERID^E)
by William H. Evans
Ever since I first read Tinkham's (1944) statement about black chry-salids of Eurema nicippe (Cramer) on the dead desert vegetation in the Big Bend region of Texas, I have been rearing a few specimens each year from southern California localities in hopes that a black pupa might turn up among the normal green ones.
Finally, in 1956, a larva on my back-yard Cassia bush transformed into a black chrysalis. In August 1957, four larvae on the same bush changed into one black pupa, one green pupa with many brown blotches, and two all-green pupae. Since all four were on the same stem of the plant and all pupated the same day, there is a good chance that all were offspring of the same female. Females emerged from the green pupae and males from the other two. After fluttering around about one hour in a cheesecloth mating cage on 22 August, the male from the black pupa mated with a female from one of the green pupae. During the two following days, this female laid 69 ova. Twenty-two larvae from these ova were reared to the pupal stage.
Chrysalids in the F5 generation of this cross consisted of the following forms: 3 very black; 5 heavily mottled with gray-black on over one-half the surface; 9 green, lightly speckled with small gray-black and brownish-black spots; and 5 all green except for the usual gray tint on the tip of the palpi case. In late September, two males and one female emerged from the black pupae; however, they were not out at the right time to obtain matings among them or with any others of the brood. Adults from the black pupae were identical in color and pattern to those from the green pupae.
One mating was obtained between a female from a heavily mottled pupa and a male sibling from a lightly speckled pupa. A small batch of larvae from this cross were reared to the pupal stage. Nine of these pupae were lightly speckled with gray-black, while seven were green with no spots.
It is unfortunate that the lack of additional matings of specimens from black pupae prevents this study from reaching any definite conclusions. It is hoped that other collectors throughout the range of E. nicippe will do some intensive rearing and breeding and will write of their observations on the color of pupae.
Reference Tinkham, E. R., 1944. Faunistic notes on the diurnal Lepidoptera of the Big Bend
Region of Trans-Pecos, Texas, with the description of a new Melitcea. Can. Ent. 76: 11-18.
8711 La Tuna Canyon Road, Sue Valley, Calif., U. S. A.