Satyr Comma (Polygonia satyrus)

Polygonia satyrus
	Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States
	Underside, Ottawa, Ontario
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Clade:	Pancrustacea
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Nymphalidae
Genus:	Polygonia
Species:	P. satyrus
Binomial name
	Polygonia satyrus; (W.H. Edwards, 1869)
Synonyms
	Nymphalis satyrus;

Polygonia satyrus, the satyr comma, is a North American butterfly of the nymphalid family. It is primarily found in western Canada, where it is locally common. It bears a resemblance to Polygonia comma, the eastern comma, with which it is frequently confused. Its caterpillars feed on Urtica gracilis, the American stinging nettle.

Distribution and habitat

The satyr comma can be commonly found throughout the Nearctic. ^[1] Individuals have been seen distributed throughout portions of North America and are particularly associated with habitats containing suitable larval host plants. The species has been recorded to be from multiple different habitat types, including grassland and Great Plains ecosystems. Recent surveys in eastern New Mexico documented new locality records for the species in the Llano Estacado region, extending known records in the area. ^[2]

Behavior

Female satyr commas display specialized host-searching behavior during oviposition. This means that they prefer to lay eggs on fresh, higher quality stinging nettles over poor quality nettles. This behavior may be associated with Polygonia satyrus's relatively specialized host range, as females show greater discrimination between host plant quality than other generalist butterfly species. ^[3]

Seasonal morphs

Studies have suggested that Polygonia satyrus have been able to retain characteristics of ancestral seasonal polymorphism within its genus. Experimental studies have shown that when day length is increased during larval development, the adults may produce different coloration than in regular day length. This may suggest that photoperiodic responses have remained present in the species. ^[4]

Larval host plants

Urtica dioica – common nettle^[5]
Humulus Lupus – common hop^[1]

External links

Satyr comma, Butterflies of Canada

Reference

^ ^a ^b Weingartner, E.; Wahlberg, N.; Nylin, S. (2006-03-01). "Dynamics of host plant use and species diversity in Polygonia butterflies (Nymphalidae)". Journal of Evolutionary Biology. 19 (2): 483–491. doi:10.1111/j.1420-9101.2005.01009.x. ISSN 1010-061X.
^ Sapkota, Anisha; Pollock, Darren A.; Shrestha, Prabha; Sajan, K. C; Cradock, Kenwyn R. (2024-08-05). "Beyond the Forest: Quantifying Species Richness and Abundance of Butterflies1 in Overlooked Great Plains of Central Eastern New Mexico, USA". Southwestern Entomologist. 49 (3). doi:10.3958/059.049.0311. ISSN 0147-1724.
^ Janz, Niklas; Nylin, Sören (1997-05-22). "The role of female search behaviour in determining host plant range in plant feeding insects: a test of the information processing hypothesis". Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences. 264 (1382): 701–707. doi:10.1098/rspb.1997.0100. ISSN 0962-8452. PMC 1688427.
^ Nylin, SöRen (June 2013). "Induction of diapause and seasonal morphs in butterflies and other insects: knowns, unknowns and the challenge of integration". Physiological Entomology. 38 (2): 96–104. doi:10.1111/phen.12014. ISSN 0307-6962. PMC 3712473. PMID 23894219.
^ Forister, M. L.; Halsch, C. A.; Nice, C. C.; Fordyce, J. A.; Dilts, T. E.; Oliver, J. C.; Prudic, K. L.; Shapiro, A. M.; Wilson, J. K.; Glassberg, J. (2021-03-05). "Fewer butterflies seen by community scientists across the warming and drying landscapes of the American West". Science. 371 (6533): 1042–1045. doi:10.1126/science.abe5585.

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[:0-1] Weingartner, E.; Wahlberg, N.; Nylin, S. (2006-03-01). "Dynamics of host plant use and species diversity in Polygonia butterflies (Nymphalidae)". Journal of Evolutionary Biology. 19 (2): 483–491. doi:10.1111/j.1420-9101.2005.01009.x. ISSN 1010-061X.

[2] Sapkota, Anisha; Pollock, Darren A.; Shrestha, Prabha; Sajan, K. C; Cradock, Kenwyn R. (2024-08-05). "Beyond the Forest: Quantifying Species Richness and Abundance of Butterflies1 in Overlooked Great Plains of Central Eastern New Mexico, USA". Southwestern Entomologist. 49 (3). doi:10.3958/059.049.0311. ISSN 0147-1724.

[3] Janz, Niklas; Nylin, Sören (1997-05-22). "The role of female search behaviour in determining host plant range in plant feeding insects: a test of the information processing hypothesis". Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences. 264 (1382): 701–707. doi:10.1098/rspb.1997.0100. ISSN 0962-8452. PMC 1688427.

[4] Nylin, SöRen (June 2013). "Induction of diapause and seasonal morphs in butterflies and other insects: knowns, unknowns and the challenge of integration". Physiological Entomology. 38 (2): 96–104. doi:10.1111/phen.12014. ISSN 0307-6962. PMC 3712473. PMID 23894219.

[5] Forister, M. L.; Halsch, C. A.; Nice, C. C.; Fordyce, J. A.; Dilts, T. E.; Oliver, J. C.; Prudic, K. L.; Shapiro, A. M.; Wilson, J. K.; Glassberg, J. (2021-03-05). "Fewer butterflies seen by community scientists across the warming and drying landscapes of the American West". Science. 371 (6533): 1042–1045. doi:10.1126/science.abe5585.

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