Mimosa Yellow (Eurema nise [Cramer])
Wing span: 1 1/8 - 2 inches (2.9 - 5.1 cm).
Identification: Both sexes yellow. Upperside of forewing with narrow black outer edges. Black margin of hindwing uncommon in male, missing in female.
Life history: Not reported.
Flight: May-August in southern Florida, September-November in southern Texas, all year in tropics.
Caterpillar hosts: Sensitive plant (Mimosa pudica) in the pea family (Fabaceae).
Adult food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Brushy woodland edges.
Range: Resident in Argentina north to the Texas Gulf Coast and southern Florida. Occasional stray to central Texas and southeastern Arizona; rarely to southern California, southern Colorado, and Kansas.
Conservation: Not usually required.
Management needs: None reported.
The Nature Conservancy Global Rank: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
References:
DeVries, P. J. 1987. The butterflies of Costa Rica and their natural history. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. 327 pages, 50 color plates. Opler, P. A. and G. O. Krizek. 1984. Butterflies east of the Great Plains. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. 294 pages, 54 color plates. Opler, P. A. and V. Malikul. 1992. A field guide to eastern butterflies. Peterson field guide #4. Houghton-Mifflin Co., Boston. 396 pages, 48 color plates. Scott, J. A. 1986. The butterflies of North America. Stanford University Press, Stanford, Calif. 583 pages, 64 color plates. Tilden, J. W. 1986. A field guide to western butterflies. Houghton-Mifflin Co., Boston, Mass. 370 pages, 23 color plates.
Author: Jane M. Struttmann
State and Regional References:
Opler, Paul A. 1999. Peterson Field Guide to Western Butterflies, revised edition. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, Mass. Stanford, R.E. and P.A. Opler. 1993. Atlas of Western USA Butterflies. Privately published, Denver, Colo.