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lejun | all galleries >> Butterflies and Moths >> Native American Butterflies >> Brush-footed Butterflies (Nymphalidae) >> True Brushfoots (Subfamily: Nymphalinae) >> Buckeyes > Common Buckeye Chrysalis with Chalcid Wasp Hole
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12-OCT-2011 Lejun

Common Buckeye Chrysalis with Chalcid Wasp Hole

Copyright © Lewis Scharpf

Probably Common Buckeye chrysalis (Junonia coenia)
The hole in the side of the chrysalis is most likely that of the emerging hole of a chalcid wasp.
If the chrysalis is indeed that of a buckeye, the hole might have been made by Hemihoplis teres.
According to Dr. Robert Carlson, this is the only ichneumonid recorded as having been reared from the buckeye. http://bugguide.net/node/view/599463#1064717
The larvae of he wasps eat the internal components of the butterfly pupae.
The wasp larvae transform into small pupae and emerge as adults through a hole they chew in the pupae.
See photo of chalcid wasp having just emerged from a buckeye chrysalis at http://www.butterflyfunfacts.com/chalcid.php
See photos of chalcid wasps at http://bugguide.net/node/view/13405
(Courtesy Shady Oak Butterfly Farm, Florida
Bon Secour National Wildlife Area
Coastal Alabama

Nikon D200 ,AF-S Nikkor 105mm f/2.8
1/200s f/10.0 at 105.0mm iso400 full exif

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comment
Adeline06-Dec-2011 22:12
This would be a beauty when adult. GBV