On the courtship behaviour of Hypolimnas misippus L., (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae), with notes on the mimetic association with Danaus chrysippus L., (Lepidoptera, Danaidae)

Summary

• 1.

  The male of H. misippus responds to the female with a characteristic sequence of courtship reactions.

• 2.

  Test insects were prepared from the wings of freshly killed butterflies. They were presented to free-living males in a manner that allowed the males to respond to them with the courtship sequence of reactions.

• 3.

  The early stages of the courtship sequence were under the control of visual stimuli, but the later stages were controlled by other stimuli, probably of a behavioural and chemosensory nature. These latter stimuli were present in both male and female test insects, and were, therefore of specific rather than sexual nature.

• 4.

  Stimuli arising from the wings of a male test insect had an inhibitory effect on the courtship reactions of living males.

• 5.

  Stimuli arising from the hindwings of a test insect had a more pronounced effect on the behaviour of the male than similar stimuli arising from the forewings.

• 6.

  The courtship sequence was strongly inhibited in its early stages by white or light coloured test insects.

• 7.

  The presence of white hindwings on the test insect exerted a strong inhibitory effect on the courtship reactions of the male. For this reason the male Hypolimnas was not normally attracted to D. chrysippus form alcippus. The latter resembles closely one of the female forms of H. misippus but possesses white hindwings.

• 8.

  It is suggested that there is no mimetic form of H. misippus corresponding to the alcippus form of D. chrysippus. The female form alcippoides of H. misippus is too scarce to be regarded as a true mimetic form.

• 9.

  It is further suggested that, since H. misippus appears to be genetically capable of developing the alcippoides form, no true mimetic association exists between H. misippus and D. chrysippus in those areas where the form alcippus of the latter species is dominant.