Butterflies of
Malaysia and Borneo
White Albatross
Appias paulina
Family - PIERIDAE
subfamily -
PIERINAE
Tribe - PIERINI
introduction
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habitats |
lifecycle |
adult behaviour
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Appias
paulina, Taman Negara, West Malaysia |
Introduction
Entomologists
disagree about
the classification of Appias.
Some consider that the South American species
drusilla, and the African
sylvia and
lasti belong in this genus, while others prefer to place
them in Glutophrissa. Disregarding
those, there are about
23-28
Appias species, comprising 7-8
species from the Australian region, and 16-20 from the Oriental
region.
Appias paulina is pure white on
the upperside wings. Males have dark markings at the apex and
wing borders, while females have more extensive dark markings
which also extend into the basal area. The underside
hindwings are pale yellow in the male. There are two forms of
the female - one has the underside hindwings bright creamy
yellow, while in the other form they are white.
This species is
found from Sri Lanka and India, through Myanmar, Thailand and
Malaysia, and south through Borneo, Sumatra, Sulawesi and New
Guinea to Australia.
Habitats
This species is probably the commonest
Appias species in eastern Malaysia. It is found in open
forested areas at elevations
between sea level and about 800m. At higher altitudes it is
replaced by the very similar Appias albina.
Lifecycle
I have no data regarding paulina,
but the larvae of other Appias
species, e.g. lyncida and
albina are green, with a pair of
anal points. They feed on Capparis.
Adult behaviour
Males
are almost always seen congregating in groups of between 10-50,
imbibing moisture from wet sandbanks, either in sunlight or
shade.
Females are normally only seen when flying in search of
egg-laying sites within the forest.
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