Page 208 - The Book of Caterpillars: A Life-Size Guide to Six Hundred Species From Around the World

BUTTERFLY CATERPILLARS

FAMILY Nymphalidae
DISTRIBUTION Across much of Africa and southern Europe
HABITAT Dry grasslands, maquis, lightly wooded hillsides, parks,
and gardens
HOST PLANTS Various, including Strawberry Tree (Arbutus unedo),
Sorghum roxburghii, Lonchocarpus cyanescens, and Cassine spp.
NOTE Bizarre-looking, “dinosaur-head” caterpillar with four
backward-pointing spines
CONSERVATION STATUS Not evaluated

ADULT WINGSPAN
2 ⁄ –3 in (65–75 mm)
CATERPILLAR LENGTH
Up to 2 in (50 mm)
CHARAXES JASIUS
TWO-TAILED PASHA
206
(LINNAEUS, 1767)

Two-tailed Pasha caterpillars hatch from large eggs laid by the

female butter y on the upper surface of leaves of the host plant;
she usually lays just one egg per leaf. Emerging, each caterpillar
spins its own leaf tent of silken threads in which it shelters when
not feeding. The caterpillars pupate away from the host plant,
either in the leaf litter or suspended from a twig by a silken

pad. The pupae are well camou aged as they resemble small,
ripening fruits. There are two generations a year, one in early

The Two-tailed Pasha caterpillar is distinctive, summer and the second in late summer. The caterpillars of the
as its large head resembles that of a tiny second generation overwinter in a leaf tent and become active
dinosaur with four backward-pointing spines.
The body is green with rings of tiny, white raised again the following spring.
dots. There are two small eyespots on the dorsal
surface and a yellow lateral line on both sides.
The adults, whose hind wings terminate in the two short tails
suggested by the species’ common name, are attracted to ripe
fruits and can be observed around a wide range of fruit-bearing
species. They are also spotted close to cafés, where they are
drawn to sugary drinks.

Actual size