Eurema hecabe

Eurema hecabe
Bangalore
E. h. solifera Ghana
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Pieridae
Genus:	Eurema
Species:	E. hecabe
Binomial name
Eurema hecabe (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms
Papilio hecabe Linnaeus, 1758 Terias hecabe Terias solifera Butler, 1875 Terias bisinuata Butler, 1876 Terias chalcomiaeta Butler, 1879 Terias dentilimbata Butler, 1879 Terias bewsheri Butler, 1879 Terias orientis Butler, 1888 Terias aethiopica Trimen & Bowker, 1889 Terias butleri Trimen & Bowker, 1889 Terias floricola f. parva Rothschild, 1921 Terias brenda ab. alba Dufrane, 1945 Terias brenda ab. subalba Dufrane, 1945 Terias floricola ab. alba Dufrane, 1945 Terias brenda ab. maureli Dufrane, 1947 Terias hecabe senegalensis f. continua Storace, 1949 Terias hecabe f. napia Stoneham, 1957 Terias hecabe f. neria Stoneham, 1957 Terias maroensis Butler, 1883 Terias biformis Butler, 1884 Terias latilimbata Butler, 1886 Terias hecabe borneensis Fruhstorfer, 1910 Terias amplexa Butler, 1887 Terias mandarina de l'Orza, 1869 Terias photophila Butler, 1884 Terias diversa Wallace, 1867 Terias hecabe oeta Fruhstorfer, 1910 Terias phoebus Butler, 1886 Eurema hecabe var. kerawara Ribbe, 1898 Eurema hecabe var. magna Ribbe, 1898 Terias contubernalis Moore, 1886

Eurema hecabe, the large grass yellow or common grass yellow, is a small pierid butterfly species found in Asia or Africa. They are found flying close to the ground and are found in open grass and scrub habitats. It is simply known as "the grass yellow" in parts of its range; the general term otherwise refers to the entire genus Eurema.

The common grass yellow exhibits seasonal polyphenism. The lepidopteran has a darker summer morph, triggered by a long day exceeding 13 hours in duration, while the shorter diurnal period of 12 hours or less induces a fairer morph in the post-monsoon period.

Upperside: yellow, variable in tint from sulphur to rich lemon yellow according to locality with a light or heavy rainfall. Forewing: apex and termen deep black, this colour continued narrowly along the costal margin to base of wing, near which it often becomes diffuse; the inner margin of the black area from costa to vein 4 very oblique and irregular, between veins 2 and 4 excavate on the inner side, this excavation outwardly rounded between the veins and inwardly toothed on vein 3; below vein 2 the black area is suddenly dilated into a square spot which occupies the whole of the tornal angle; the inner margin of this dilatation is variable, in the typical form slightly concave. Hindwing: terminal margin with a narrow black band which is attenuated anteriorly and posteriorly; dorsal margin broadly paler than the ground colour.

Underside: yellow, generally a slightly paler shade than that of the upperside, with the following reddish-brown markings. Forewing: two small spots or specks in basal half of cell and a reniform (kidney-shaped) spot or ring on the discocellulars. Hindwing: a slightly curved subbasal series of three small spots, an irregular slender ring or spot on the discocellulars, followed by a highly irregular, curved, transverse, discal series of spots or specks, some or all of which are often obsolescent. On both forewing and hindwings the veins that attain the costal and terminal margins end in minute reddish-brown specks. Antenna greyish yellow, the club black; head, thorax and abdomen yellow, shaded with fuscous scales; beneath: the palpi, thorax and abdomen yellowish white. The sex-mark seen from above appears as a thickening of the basal half of the median vein on the forewing.

Upperside: Very similar to that of the male but without the sex-mark; the black areas on both forewings and hindwings slightly broader, with the inner edge of the black terminal band on the hindwing often diffuse.

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Wikipedia