Cold Weather Form of Colias eurytheme

Leptraps at aol.com Leptraps at aol.com
Sun Aug 26 22:42:29 EDT 2001


As a teenager growing up in northeast Ohio, one of the last butterflies we 
would collect each year were the extremely dark forms of Colias philodice and 
Colias eurytheme. These usually where on the wing after a frost or freeze on 
a warm day in late October through December. They usually have considerable 
green on the underside of the hindwings.

The following spring, we would collect them again, in mid-April as soon as 
the weather warmed up. However, the males always looked like hybrids between 
Colias eurytheme and Colias philodice.

Forty years later I am still finding the same things. During the Society of 
Kentucky Lepidopterists spring field meeting at Red River Gorge in the Daniel 
Boone National Forest, I collected several females of Colias eurytheme and 
they oviposited on White Sweet Clover. When the adults emerged in mid-May, 
they where 95% eurytheme with only a few hybrids (Some Yellow) I collected 
several males of C. eurytheme to mate with my reared females. ( I am not much 
for Greek Tragedies) The next generation and all of those that have followed 
are 100% C. eurytheme. No hybrids. Also, of the almost 500 individuals that I 
have reared, not one white morph of the female.

Several days ago I collected a dozen white females of both Colias philodice 
and Colias eurytheme and I now have several hundred ova. Will these produce 
more white females?

I believe that I have one more generation and then will I see the cold 
weather form? Or does the cold weather form only exist as hybrids?

All of the Colias philodice that I have reared, I have never seen a white 
female nor have I seen a hybrid. Also, I cannot get males of Colias eurytheme 
to mate with females of Colias philodice or vise versa.

Has anyone else reared the winter form of either?

Cheers,

Leroy C. Koehn
202 Redding Road
Georgetown, Kentucky
USA          40324-2622
Tele.: 502-570-9123
Cell: 502-803-5422
E-mail: Leptraps at aol.com

"Let's get among them"
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