Pale-banded Crescent

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The Pale-banded Crescent butterfly (Anthanassa tulcis), also known as the Tulcis Crescent, is a neotropical species with a range limited to South Texas and parts of the Southwest.

The top picture was taken at the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge in the Lower Rio Grande Valley.

As with its wider ranging relative, the Texan Crescent, dark wings and a lack of dark spots bordering the bottom of hind wings represent two initial field identification clues.

The pale yellow, bordering on white, band on the hind wings also marks the species. Further south, it may be mistaken for other Anthanassa species such as the Darkened Crescent, however, it's fairly easy to recognize in the United States.

Caterpillars feed on plants in the Dicliptera genus (foldwings), a common genus of plant in the Southwest and Southeast, so it's not a big step to hypothesize that a changing climate might suggest a larger United States presence in the future.

© 2008 Patricia A. Michaels