Field Guide to the butterflies of the Springfield Plantation Tasha Bedgood Texas A&M University Study Abroad Program Dr. Tom Lacher Dr. Robert Wharton Dominica 2001 Tasha Bedgood Dominica 2001 Field Guide to the butterflies of the Springfield Plantation Abstract Butterflies are in the order Lepidoptera and I have found six different families and sixteen different species. The butterflies that were found on the trail to the right of the veranda consisted of a variety of different species, as opposed to some of the other locations that contained only a few different species. The Caribbean Buckeye was the one species of butterfly that seemed to be grouped in one area. They are found in great quantities at Mt. Joy. Introduction Dominica is a beautiful island with many natural attractions and historical sites. One of the attractions on the island is the Springfield Plantation. It is an old plantation that has not been in operation for some time. Clemson University bought the plantation in 1989 and renamed it The Archbold Tropical Research Center. The plantation is now used as a guesthouse and a center for environmental protection, research, and education. Springfield is in a transitional or deciduous forest, which allows researchers to study a variety of species of the flora and fauna. While I was at the center, I chose to study the butterflies on the plantation. Butterflies are beautiful creatures that catch the eye of anyone they encounter. I did a survey of the butterflies and recorded the species in different areas. Method and Materials I caught and identified a number of butterflies around the field station (veranda), the stream house, down a path to the right of the veranda, at the Bee House, and at Mt. Joy (the old dorms). I observed and recorded species at these locations for three days. When I had gathered enough information, I examined the data and looked for a pattern in the areas where I observed butterflies. To aid in my research, I used: ▸ Butterfly nets ▸ Field guide to the butterflies of Dominica ▸ Butterflies and Other Insects of the Eastern Caribbean (1989) by Peter Stiling Results Total butterflies a day: May 30 June 1 June 4 Stream house 15 11 10 Veranda 18 15 14 Trail 36 32 32 Bee House 11 13 15 Mt. Joy 27 27 23 TOTAL 107 98 94 Number of species a day: May 30 June 1 June 4 Stream house 4 4 6 Veranda 6 4 5 Trail 14 12 14 Bee House 6 7 5 Mt. Joy 9 8 6 Complete Species List: Day one (5-30-2001) At the stream house: total = 15 Family Nymphalidae 1 Junonia evarete (Caribbean Buckeye) Family Pieridae 5 Ascia monuste (Great Southern White) 4 Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur) 3 Appias drusilla (Florida White) Family Lycaenidae 1 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) Family Hesperiidae 1 Polites dictynna (Lesser Whirlabout) At the field station (veranda): total = 18 Family Pieridae 6 Ascia monuste (Great Southern White) 5 Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur) Family Lycaenidae 3 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) 1 Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue) Family Danaidae 3 Danaus plexippus (The Monarch) On the trail to the right of the veranda: total = 36 Family Nymphalidae 2 Anartia jatrophae (White Peacock) 1 Junonia evarete (Caribbean Buckeye) Family Pieridae 2 Ascia monuste (Great Southern White) 6 Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur) 2 Appias drusilla (Florida White) 3 Eurema venuste (Little Yellow) 2 Phoebis trite (Straight-line Sulphur) Family Lycaenidae 4 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) 2 Strymon bubastus (Bubastus Hairstreak) 1 Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue) Family Danaidae 3 Danaus plexippus (The Monarch) Family Heliconiidae 2 Dione vanillae (Gulf Fritillary) Family Hesperiidae 2 Pyrgus oileus (Tropical Chequered Skipper) 4 Wallengrenia otho (Broken Dash Skipper) At the Bee House: total = 11 Family Nymphalidae 2 Anartia jatrophae (White Peacock) Family Pieridae 3 Eurema venuste (Little Yellow) Family Lycaenidae 3 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) Family Danaidae 2 Danaus plexippus (The Monarch) Family Hesperiidae 1 Wallengrenia otho (Broken Dash Skipper) At My. Joy (old dorms): total = 27 Family Nymphalidae 2 Anartia jatrophae (White Peacock) 15 Junonia evarete (Caribbean Buckeye) Family Pieridae 2 Eurema leuce (Hall’s Sulphur) 3 Eurema venuste (Little Yellow) Family Lycaenidae 4 Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue) Family Danaidae 1 Danaus plexippus (The Monarch) Day two (6-1-2001) At the stream house: total = 11 Family Pieridae 4 Ascia monuste (Great Southern White) 2 Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur) 2 Appias drusilla (Florida White) Family Lycaenidae 3 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) At the field station (veranda): total = 15 Family Pieridae 7 Ascia monuste (Great Southern White) 5 Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur) Family Lycaenidae 2 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) Family Danaidae 1 Danaus plexippus (The Monarch) On the trail to the right of the veranda: total = 32 Family Nymphalidae 3 Anartia jatrophae (White Peacock) 2 Junonia evarete (Caribbean Buckeye) Family Pieridae 4 Ascia monuste (Great Southern White) 7 Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur) 1 Appias drusilla (Florida White) 1 Eurema venuste (Little Yellow) Family Lycaenidae 4 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) 3 Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue) Family Danaidae 3 Danaus plexippus (The Monarch) Family Heliconiidae 1 Dione vanillae (Gulf Fritillary) Family Hesperiidae 1 Pyrgus oileus (Tropical Chequered Skipper) 2 Wallengrenia otho (Broken Dash Skipper) At the Bee House: total = 13 Family Nymphalidae 1 Anartia jatrophae (White Peacock) Family Pieridae 3 Appias drusilla (Florida White) 2 Eurema venuste (Little Yellow) Family Lycaenidae 1 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) 3 Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue) Family Danaidae 1 Danaus plexippus (The Monarch) Family Hesperiidae 2 Pyrgus oileus (Tropical Chequered Skipper) At My. Joy (old dorms): total = 27 Family Nymphalidae 2 Anartia jatrophae (White Peacock) 13 Junonia evarete (Caribbean Buckeye) Family Pieridae 2 Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur) 3 Eurema leuce (Hall’s Sulphur) 2 Eurema venuste (Little Yellow) Family Lycaenidae 2 Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue) Family Danaidae 2 Danaus plexippus (The Monarch) Family Hesperiidae 1 Wallengrenia otho (Broken Dash Skipper) Day three (6-4-2001) At the stream house: total = 10 Family Pieridae 4 Ascia monuste (Great Southern White) 3 Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur) 2 Appias drusilla (Florida White) Family Lycaenidae 1 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) At the field station (veranda): total = 14 Family Pieridae 4 Ascia monuste (Great Southern White) 4 Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur) 2 Appias drusilla (Florida White) Family Lycaenidae 2 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) 1 Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue) Family Hesperiidae 1 Polites dictynna (Lesser Whirlabout) On the trail to the right of the veranda: total = 32 Family Nymphalidae 2 Anartia jatrophae (White Peacock) 1 Junonia evarete (Caribbean Buckeye) Family Pieridae 2 Ascia monuste (Great Southern White) 4 Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur) 3 Appias drusilla (Florida White) 4 Eurema venuste (Little Yellow) 1 Phoebis trite (Straight-line Sulphur) Family Lycaenidae 3 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) 1 Strymon bubastus (Bubastus Hairstreak) 3 Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue) Family Danaidae 2 Danaus plexippus (The Monarch) Family Heliconiidae 2 Dione vanillae (Gulf Fritillary) Family Hesperiidae 2 Pyrgus oileus (Tropical Chequered Skipper) 2 Wallengrenia otho (Broken Dash Skipper) At the Bee House: total = 15 Family Nymphalidae 3 Anartia jatrophae (White Peacock) Family Pieridae 4 Appias drusilla (Florida White) 2 Eurema venuste (Little Yellow) Family Lycaenidae 3 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) 2 Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue) Family Hesperiidae 1 Pyrgus oileus (Tropical Chequered Skipper) At My. Joy (old dorms): total = 23 Family Nymphalidae 1 Anartia jatrophae (White Peacock) 10 Junonia evarete (Caribbean Buckeye) Family Pieridae 1 Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur) 2 Eurema leuce (Hall’s Sulphur) 2 Eurema venuste (Little Yellow) Family Lycaenidae 3 Hemiargus hanno (Hanno Blue) 2 Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue) Family Danaidae 1 Danaus plexippus (The Monarch) Family Hesperiidae 1 Wallengrenia otho (Broken Dash Skipper) Discussion Butterflies are in the order Lepidoptera and I have found six different families and sixteen different species. I had no way of marking the butterflies, so it is possible that I have recorded the same butterfly more than once in one evening. I tried not to stay in one area too long to avoid this. I also alternated the times of the day that I went to the different areas of study. The first day I went to the stream house, veranda, and the trail to the right of the veranda in the morning and then I went to the Bee House and Mt. Joy in the evening. I alternated the locations and times for three days. In order to identify the butterflies in a precise way, I would catch them with a butterfly net and then use my reference material to correctly identify them. Along with identifying them, I would note where they were at the time of capture. From my experience, the butterflies around the stream house and the veranda never really landed on anything, they just flew around, so I had to catch them (though a few of the butterflies did land on the plumeria tree by the veranda). The butterflies at the other locations were easier to identify because they would land on the flowers or plants long enough for me to identify them. The butterflies that I identified were fairly consistent in species composition in the areas at which they stayed. I found that most of the butterflies were found on the trail to the right of the veranda that heads down to the big fig tree. The ones found on the trail consisted of a variety of different species, as opposed to some of the other locations that contained only a few different species. Mt. Joy appeared to be the best place to view the Caribbean Buckeye and the only place to find the Hall’s Sulphurs. The Buckeyes were very plentiful there and very scarce in the other locations. The Great Southern White and the Cloudless Sulphur were very numerous all over the plantation and from what I have observed by traveling over the island, they occur in all types of habitat.