Melete Swainson, [1831]

Braby, Michael F. & Nishida, Kenji, 2010, The immature stages, larval food plants and biology of Neotropical mistletoe butterflies (Lepidoptera: Pieridae). II. The Catasticta group (Pierini: Aporiina), Journal of Natural History 44 (29 - 30), pp. 1831-1928 : 1841-1842

Melete Swainson, [1831]

Recent phylogenetic analyses suggest that Melete is the sister lineage to all other taxa of the Catasticta group (Braby et al. 2006, 2007). The genus includes six species (Lamas 2004) and is restricted largely to the Neotropical Region, with temporary incursions into the Nearctic. The genus extends from central eastern and southern Mexico ( de la Maza 1987; Salinas et al. 2004; Dauphin et al. 2005) and the Caribbean ( Cuba, Haiti, Dominican Republic) ( Riley 1975; Smith et al. 1994) to Bolivia and Brazil ( D’Abrera 1981; Lamas 2004), occasionally extending as far north as the lower Rio Grande Valley of southern Texas, USA, where the species probably does not breed ( Dauphin et al. 2005). Melete inhabits dry forest and tropical forest, mostly in lowland areas from sea level to 1200 m, and at times adults may occur in great abundance ( Smith et al. 1994).

Gundlach (1881) in Smith et al. (1994) and Schultze-Rhonhof (1933) first made early references to mistletoes comprising the larval food plants. The immature stages have since been recorded for three species of Melete in association with Phoradendron (Viscaceae) from various countries in Central America and the Caribbean ( Bruner et al. 1945; Riley 1975; Smith et al. 1994; Wetherbee 1996; Meerman 1999; Janzen and Hallwachs 2009) and Struthanthus (Loranthaceae) from Venezuela ( Alvarez and Alvarez 1984) and Colombia (Constantino 2004), but few details have been reported on other aspects of the life history. Beccaloni et al. (2008) regarded records from the Annonaceae , Bignoniaceae , Sapindaceae and Verbenaceae for Melete as erroneous, and these plants most likely represent the mistletoe host tree on which the larvae frequently pupate. The record of Phoradendron quadrangulare (Kunth) Griseb for M. polyhymnia florinda (Butler, 1875) from Costa Rica ( Beccaloni et al. 2008) is in error and refers to M. lycimnia isandra (Boisduval, 1836) (voucher material reared in Janzen and Hallwachs’ (2009) database examined by M.F. Braby in 2000). Schultze-Rhonhof (1933 p. 38–39) remarked that in Colombia:

Ich fand die Daptonoura -Raupen tagsüber, zu einem grossen “Spiegel” vereint, am unteren Stammende einer Sterculiaceae , konnte dann aber sofort festellen, dass die Blätter dieses Baumes intakt geblieben, die auf ihm schmarotzenden Loranthaceen dagegem von den Raupen – offenbar des Nachts – vollständig kahl gefressen waren. Die Daptonoura- Raupen waren denen von Pereute im Habitus ähnlich und ergaben dieselben stark bedornten Puppen wie bei dieser Gattung.

[I found the Daptonoura [sic] caterpillars during the day reunited to a big “mirror” on the lower end of the trunk of a Stericuliaceae. I realized immediately that the leaves of this tree were intact, while the Loranthaceae that were sponging on the tree were completely bare – apparently being eaten during the night. The appearance of the Daptonoura [sic] caterpillars was similar to the appearance of the Pereute caterpillars, and they resulted in the same heavily thorny cocoons as the Pereute .] (Our translation) Schultze-Rhonhof (1933) did not specify which species of butterfly was involved. More recently, Alvarez and Alvarez (1984) and Constantino (2004) provided brief notes for M. lycimnia (Butler, 1896) from Venezuela and Colombia, respectively (summarized below). Wetherbee (1996 p. 267) noted that the larvae of M. salacia (Godart, 1819) are gregarious and “dull green... shows no sign of warning coloration... The pupa is white and green...”

In addition to our reared material of the immature stages of M. lycimnia described below, we examined four pupal specimens of Melete from Mexico, Honduras and Panama preserved in the wet (alcohol) collection at USNM. These specimens are labelled as follows: “Daptoneura sp., Z-1615. Alejuela, Panama, Jan. 12-1922. J. Zetek” (two pupae); “(Daptoneura) Melete sp. (Prob. lisandra (Bvd) [sic] or florinda (Bwtlr.), On var. legumes , etc Honduras 19Aug. “48, T.P. Hubbel, Coll. N.Y. 11” (one pupa); “ Melete sp. DMW ‘85”, “Daptoneura sp. DMW ‘74, Orchid plants 12-IV-1972, Jalapa, Jalisco, Mexico; 72-6928 Laredo 3659” (1 pupa). The pupae closely resemble M. lycimnia isandra although we have not seen the immature stages of M. polyhymnia florinda , one of two other species which occur in Central America, the third being M. salacia which is endemic to the Caribbean.