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Variable Cracker (Hamadryas feronia [Linnaeus])
Wing span: 2 7/8 - 3 1/4 inches (7.3 - 8.3 cm).
Identification: Upperside of forewing is brown and white, sometimes bluish, with a red bar in the cell; hindwing eyespots are each black with a white center, surrounded by a blue ring. Underside of hindwing is white or tan-white with submarginal black rings.
Life history: Adults perch on tree trunks head downward with their wings spread open, and males make a cracking noise when they fly. Before dark, adults gather on a single tree, then disperse to roost in nearby trees or shrubs.
Flight: Throughout the year in the tropics, July-December in South Texas.
Caterpillar hosts: Vine Dalechampia in the family Euphorbiaceae.
Adult food: Rotting fruit and other non-floral resources.
Habitat: Tropical forest edges, cutover second growth.
Range: Argentina and Brazil north through tropical America to Mexico. Strays to the lower Rio Grande Valley of South Texas.
Conservation: Not required for a rare stray.
The Nature Conservancy Global Rank: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management needs: None reported.
References:
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.
Author: Jane M. Struttmann
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 1999 -
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