Gray pansy (Junonia atlites)

Gray pansy (Junonia atlites) is a species of butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is a medium-sized butterfly with a wingspan of 55–60 mm, characterized by a gray coloration adorned with small brown and black circular markings. It inhabits forest thickets and agricultural lands, maintains a defined territory, and will occasionally attack other butterfly species.

The upperside of the wings in both sexes is a pale lavender-brown, with the apical region appearing lighter. On the forewing, the cell area contains three short, wavy, transverse black bands; the outermost band marks the discocellular boundary. Beyond the end of the cell, there is another similar, shorter, and slightly wider band. Two faint black bands cross the discal area.



The inner band is highly wavy and forms an angle above vein 4, while the outer band is straighter and slightly curved (crescent-shaped). These are bordered by a series of whitish ovals, each containing a dark or black center.

Within these ovals, the black-centered spots—located in the interspaces between veins 2, 5, and 6—are bordered on their inner side by a deep ochre-yellow. Beyond this row of ovals lies a narrow, crescent-shaped dark band, followed by broad dark lines across the subterminal and terminal areas. The wing tips appear somewhat dark gray (fuliginous).

The hindwing features a thin black arc extending from vein 6 to vein 4 at the end of the cell area. Two dark bands cross the discal area—continuations of the bands found on the forewing—followed by a row of dark-centered ovals in the interspaces between veins 2 and 6. In the interspaces between veins 2, 5, and 6, the dark centers of these ovals are bordered on the inner side by an ochre-yellow hue. In the postdiscal, subterminal, and terminal areas, there are crescent-shaped dark lines.

On the underside of the wings, the patterns resemble those on the upperside, though they appear much more delicate, faint, and subtle. In males during the dry season, the row of oval shapes is represented simply by ovals with yellow centers. The most prominent feature is the inner discal band that crosses the wings; this band is far less wavy than its counterpart on the upperside and does not form an angle on the forewing. In females, the entire pattern appears bolder and more distinct, with the spaces between the various transverse bands colored in an ocher-yellow hue.

When in flight, this species exhibits a characteristic gliding style. In sunny conditions, the adult butterflies have a habit of spreading their wings wide to bask while perched. Eggs are laid singly on the leaves or buds of the host plant. They are greenish in color, somewhat spherical with a flattened top, and feature a series of longitudinal ridges extending from the top to the base. The eggs have a diameter of 0.6–0.7 mm.

The eggs take 3 days to hatch. Upon hatching, the caterpillar consumes a portion of the eggshell before proceeding to eat the remainder from the outside.

In the first instar, the caterpillar measures 1.3 mm in length; its body is cylindrical, yellowish-orange, and covered in numerous tubercles. Long, dark-colored setae emerge from these tubercles. The head is black. Later, the body color shifts to yellowish-green. This stage lasts 2–3 days, reaching a length of approximately 3 mm.

The second instar is pale brown. Branched, brownish tubercles are distributed along the body, with fine hairs emerging from them. The head is black. This stage lasts 2–2.5 days, with a length of 5 mm.

In the third instar, the dorso-lateral and lateral tubercles are proportionally longer. This stage lasts 2 days, with a length of 9.5 mm.

In the fourth instar, the tubercles are longer, and the body color becomes a darker brown. This stage lasts 3 days, with a length of 16 mm.

The fifth instar appears almost black. A dense layer of long setae covers the entire surface of the body. The black head capsule is adorned with small orange spots. This instar lasts 3 days, with a length of 24 mm.

In the 6th instar, the surface is covered by a much denser layer of fine, whitish hairs. A yellow-orange stripe runs along the side of the body, just below the spiracles. The head capsule is black, with the upper quarter being orange. This phase lasts 4–5 days, and the larva reaches a length of 45 mm.

The caterpillar stops feeding and begins to wander, eventually settling on the underside of a leaf, a petiole, or a young stem, where it spins a silk pad. It then hangs vertically from this pad to enter the prepupal phase.

Pupation occurs 0.5 days later. The pupa hangs from the silk pad without a supporting girdle. The entire body of the pupa is grayish-brown, featuring rows of short, pointed projections along the dorso-lateral region—one pair on each body segment. The dorsum forms a sharp prominence in the mesothoracic area. The pupa measures 17–19 mm in length.

After developing for approximately 6 days, the pupal cuticle becomes translucent, and the pupa appears dark brown. Orange-brown patches become visible on the developing wing cases. The adult butterfly emerges from the pupa the following day.

TAXON

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Hexapoda
Class: Insecta
Subclass: Pterygota
Order: Lepidoptera
Superfamily: Papilionoidea
Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Nymphalinae
Tribe: Junoniini
Genus: Junonia übner (1819)
Species: Junonia atlites Linnaeus (1763)

SYNONYMS

Papilio atlites Linnaeus (1763)
Papilio laomedia Linnaeus (1767)
Precis atlites acera Fruhstorfer (1912)

VERNACULAR NAME

Chinese (simplified): 波纹眼蛱蝶 - 波紋眼蛺蝶 - 蘆蛺蝶
English: Grey pansy, Grey pansy butterfly
Finnish: Harmokapteeni
French: Junonie grise
Hong Kong: 波紋眼蛺蝶
Indonesia: Kupu-kupu pansi abu-abu
Japanese: アトリテスタテハモドキ - ウスムラサキタテハモドキ - ハイイロタテハモドキ
Java: Kupu pansi abu-abu
Macao: 波紋眼蛺蝶
Maharashtra: राखी भिरभिरी
Marathi: राखी भिरभिरी
Spanish: Mariposa ojos de venado gris
Taiwan: 波紋眼蛺蝶 - 蘆蛺蝶
Thai: ผีเสื้อแพนซีเทา

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