LIFE HISTORY OF THE TAMIL YEOMAN BUTTERFLY

摘要

The Tamil yeoman butterfly {Cirrochroa thais), first described by Fabricius in 1787, belongs to the family Nymphalidae which comprises 67 species in Sri Lanka, including seven endemics (Perera and Bambaradeniya, 2006.) This is the only member of the genus Cirrochroa recorded in Sri Lanka, and the species is restricted to Sri Lanka and India. It is not an uncommon butterfly, and occurs throughout the island up to 1,200 meters above sea level. The Tamil yeoman is a strong butterfly and can fly at considerably great speeds when threatened and disturbed; however, the species can be easily approached while feeding. This species usually flies up to tree canopy level and can also be seen on wet patches on the ground, depicting a large microhabitat selection. Tamil yeoman butterflies breed throughout the year and the known host plants of the caterpillars belong to the family Flacourtiaceae, especially Hydnocarpus wightiana (Davidson & Aitken, 1890).