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Pale Owl Butterfly

Caligo telamonius menus ?

Description:

This butterfly was photographed just after sunrise, remaining still without opening its wings. It was not bothered by the camera or a group of hikers, and flew off after everyone had passed by.

Habitat:

Perched on a leafy bush on a hill approximately five meters from the edge of the rainforest of Corcovado National Park, within twenty meters of a sandy beach and small rocky cove.

Notes:

The ventral side of the wings is best shown in the first photo, while the body is partially shown in the second photo.

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4 Comments

Annika
Annika 10 years ago

Okay, I'll try to look around for more clues as well; I appreciate your assistance! :)

bayucca
bayucca 10 years ago

That was actually the reason why I brought Sulanus into the game. I do not really have a safe clue to separate them. At the moment I am on holidays, so no books and resources around. I will try to get an answer later, but be patient...

Annika
Annika 10 years ago

Hi bayucca, I looked at C. brasiliensis sulanus initially but I didn't see the small spot nearest the eye on the ventral hindwing in photos of that species (it seemed to be mostly present in photos of C. telamonius menus, especially the first few photos - see my second reference link), so I ruled it out near the end. I definitely will rethink the ID since the last photo in the link you provided seems extremely similar. I was mostly using the marbling pattern and coloration on the forewing and the spots on the hindwing to compare between species of Caligo. Do you know what the distinguishing features are between the species? All the ID sites I've found don't really give tips for species comparisons, and my local library doesn't have anything helpful. Thank you for the suggestion!

bayucca
bayucca 10 years ago

I do not challenge your ID, but did you check Caligo brasiliensis sulanus?
http://butterfliesofamerica.com/caligo_b...

Annika
Spotted by
Annika

Cartago, Costa Rica

Spotted on Jun 20, 2012
Submitted on Aug 21, 2013

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