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''Ancistroides folus'', the grass demon, is a small but prominent butterfly found in India & Nepal that belongs to the skipper family, 
File:Udaspes folus-Kadavoor-2016-04-12-001.jpg, Underside
File:Grass Demon (Udaspes folus) UP. Thane, Maharashtra. (2).jpg, Upperside
File:Grass Demon Mating 07151.jpg, Mating pair
File:Grass Demon Udaspes folus as prey of Crab Spider Sanjay Gandhi National Park Mumbai DSCF2823.JPG, As prey of a crab spider
When basking it sits on the upperside of leaves of herbs or bushes with its hindwings pressed flat against the surface and its forewings held half open at an angle above the hindwings.
This butterfly also has a unique wing flashing display most often seen just after it has alighted on a leaf. It will move its hindwings down toward the leaf surface. When the hindwings are about halfway down the forewings also start moving downwards. On the upward beat both wings are moved simultaneously till the hindwings come together. Then it again begins the downward beat. Each beat is performed very slowly and the butterfly is very conspicuous during this time.
This display is unique since no other peninsular Indian butterfly is known to display the capability of moving forewings and hindwings separately.
The grass demon is a nectar lover and has a long proboscis compared to body size. This makes it easy to get to
The butterflies emerge in February or March and lay eggs before they die. The eggs remain dormant till the rains, that is, usually the month of May, when they hatch. The caterpillars pupate in September and October and the adults emerge four to six months later. In some cases the caterpillars pupate later and in these cases the pupa remain dormant, throughout the dry season, till May when the rains begin.
Soon after hatching, the caterpillar does not consume the eggshell completely and it makes itself a spacious cell and hides inside it. The caterpillar is sluggish and comes out to feed only at night. Even when disturbed it is reluctant to leave its cell.
The
Pupation takes place on the same plant within a cell. The pupa is long and cylindrical, watery green in colour. It has a long conical projection in front of the head. The eyes are easily seen but do not protrude out of the outline of the pupa. The pupa broadens towards the shoulders and the abdomen gradually tapers to the last segment.
The most striking characteristic of the pupa is its proboscis. It is long and thin generally extending up to and a little beyond the tip of the abdomen. The pupa is the same colour of the caterpillar and unmarked. It is covered in a thin layer of white powder. The body band is neither too tight nor too loose and allows the pupa to wriggle if disturbed.
File:Larvaonsontakka.jpg, Caterpillar on ginger leaf
File:Udaspes folus constructing its leaf shelter.JPG, Caterpillar constructing its leaf shelter
File:grass demon pupa.jpg, Pupa on turmeric
Hesperiidae
Skippers are a family of the Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies) named the Hesperiidae. Being diurnal, they are generally called butterflies. They were previously placed in a separate superfamily, Hesperioidea; however, the most recent taxonomy ...
. It is regarded as an occasional pest of ginger and turmeric plants.
Description
It is a small butterfly with a wingspan of about 4 to 4.8 cm. It is black with a large white spot on the upperside of the hindwing and several smaller whites spots on the forewing. The underside of its wings is mostly white with brown edges and spots.Range
Sri Lanka, India, Nepal and onto Myanmar, China, India, Indochina, Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, Malaysian Peninsula, Singapore, Borneo, IndonesiaHong Kong biodiversity database (Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, Government of Hong Kong)Status
Not rare in India. Rare or very rare in certain parts of its global range. This butterfly is seen chiefly during the monsoon, perhaps due to its larval host plants growing at this time of the year.Habitat
The grass demon is to be found in deciduous and semi-evergreen forests. It prefers the edges of open spaces rather than the deep forest shade or open sunlight. It is most abundant in the more open regions of hilly jungle. It is also encountered on the plains at some distance from such terrain. It occurs up to in the hills of South India and up to in the Himalayas.Habits
The grass demon prefers forest edges or clearings where dappled light is present. Its black and white colouration may have evolved to take advantage of the dappled light in these areas. The pied pattern which seems prominent in the open is effectively disruptive in the shade and the butterfly is difficult to locate once it settles down. It is a bold insect and not easily disturbed. It usually flies in the shade among bushes and under trees keeping low and close to the ground. From time to time, it takes short flights, and, occasionally, much longer excursions into the open clearings. Its flight is quick and the path is very erratic making it very difficult to track when in flight.nectar
Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualists ...
of flowers with long corolla
Corolla may refer to:
*Corolla (botany), the petals of a flower, considered as a unit
*Toyota Corolla, an automobile model name
* Corolla (headgear), an ancient headdress in the form of a circlet or crown
* ''Corolla'' (gastropod), a genus of moll ...
tubes. In gardens, the common periwinkle ('' Vinca rosea'') and '' Lantana'' are its favourite flowers. It rarely visits bird or dung droppings. It is fond of water and often seen perched on a stone in a stream-bed.
Life cycle
The butterflies emerge in February or March and lay eggs before they die. The eggs remain dormant till the rains, that is, usually the month of May, when they hatch. The caterpillars pupate in September and October and the adults emerge four to six months later. In some cases the caterpillars pupate later and in these cases the pupa remain dormant, throughout the dry season, till May when the rains begin.
Eggs
The female normally sits on the underside of the leaf of the host plant and lays a singleegg
An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the a ...
. The egg is reddish and appears smooth and dome shaped. When about to hatch it turns white with a red top.
Larva
Soon after hatching, the caterpillar does not consume the eggshell completely and it makes itself a spacious cell and hides inside it. The caterpillar is sluggish and comes out to feed only at night. Even when disturbed it is reluctant to leave its cell.
The caterpillar
Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths).
As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...
is a light uniform leaf green colour with a dark green pulsating line on the back and a relatively small, dark head. The full grown larva has the habit of resting with the first three segments contracted, so as to give a humped appearance. It always lies closely applied to the leaf, by turning over a triangular piece from the edge onto the upper surface over itself. Specific host plants include '' Zingiber zerumbet''.
Pupa
Pupation takes place on the same plant within a cell. The pupa is long and cylindrical, watery green in colour. It has a long conical projection in front of the head. The eyes are easily seen but do not protrude out of the outline of the pupa. The pupa broadens towards the shoulders and the abdomen gradually tapers to the last segment.
The most striking characteristic of the pupa is its proboscis. It is long and thin generally extending up to and a little beyond the tip of the abdomen. The pupa is the same colour of the caterpillar and unmarked. It is covered in a thin layer of white powder. The body band is neither too tight nor too loose and allows the pupa to wriggle if disturbed.
Food plants
The grass demon feeds onginger
Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice
A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices ...
, turmeric, and their relatives ''Curcuma aromatica
''Curcuma aromatica'' (common name: wild turmeric) is a member of the genus '' Curcuma'' belonging to the family Zingiberaceae. Botanically close to '' Curcuma australasica'', wild turmeric has been widely used as a cosmetic herbal in South Asia ...
'', ''Curcuma decipiens
''Curcuma'' () is a genus of plants in the family Zingiberaceae that contains such species as turmeric and Siam tulip. They are native to Southeast Asia, southern China, the Indian Subcontinent, New Guinea and northern Australia. Some species are ...
'', ''Hedychium'' sp. and other plants of family Sctiaminae. It has also been recorded on ''Zingiber'' sp. and on grasses.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Udaspes Folus Ancistroidini Butterflies of Asia Butterflies described in 1775 Butterflies of Singapore Butterflies of Indochina Taxa named by Pieter Cramer