Gulf Fritillary Butterfly on a Thistle Photograph by Catherine Sherman

Gulf Fritillary Butterfly on a Thistle

by Catherine Sherman

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Title

Gulf Fritillary Butterfly on a Thistle

Artist

Catherine Sherman

Medium

Photograph - Photography

Description

"Gulf Fritillary Butterfly on a Thistle, Florida" by Catherine Sherman.

A Gulf Fritillary Butterfly sips nectar from a Thistle, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

The Gulf Fritillary or passion butterfly (Agraulis vanillae) is a bright orange butterfly of the family Nymphalidae and subfamily Heliconiinae. That subfamily was formerly set apart as a separate family, the Heliconiidae. The Heliconiinae are "longwing butterflies", which have long, narrow wings compared to other butterflies. Gulf fritillary is the only member of genus Agraulis.

Agraulis vanillae is most commonly found in the southern areas of the United States, specifically in many regions of Florida and Texas.

Gulf fritillaries have a chemical defense mechanism in which they release odorous chemicals in response to predator sightings. As a result, common predators learn to avoid this species. Pheromones play a critical role in male-female courtship behaviors, with male gulf fritillaries emitting sex pheromones that contribute to mate choice in females.

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge is a 140,000 acres (57,000 ha) U.S. National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) on the Atlantic coast of Florida's largest barrier island. NASA's Kennedy Space Center and visitor complex are also situated on the island. There are public hiking and driving trails.

The NWR contains over 1000 species of plants; 117 species of fish; 68 amphibians and reptiles; 330 species of birds; and 31 mammal species, of which 21 species are listed as endangered by the state of Florida or by the US federal government.

Featured in "Groovy Butterflies" group (03/17/2019); "USA Photographers Only" group (07/08/2020)