Oomisuji - Oomisuji

A butterfly belonging to the family Nymphalidae, order Lepidoptera, class Insecta. In Japan, it is found in Hokkaido and Honshu. In Hokkaido, it is found only in the southern part of the Oshima Peninsula, but in Honshu, it is found somewhat more widely from Aomori Prefecture to the Ibuki Mountains on the border between Gifu and Shiga Prefectures. Outside of Japan, it is found in the Korean Peninsula and China, and is a species endemic to Eastern Asia. Its wing span is about 78 mm. It is the largest species of the Japanese Nymphalidae, and is easily distinguished from other Nymphalidae by the white spots at the tip of the forewings and the jagged cuts in the white stripes running through the middle of the forewings. It appears once a year, from early to mid-June in warm areas and from July to August in mountainous and cold areas. It is rare in mountain forests, but is common in villages and their vicinity. This is because the food plants that this species prefers are often planted around villages. The larvae feed on plants of the Rosaceae family, such as plum, apricot, Japanese plum, peach, toadflax, and cherry trees, and the adults often circle around the tops of these plants. In their hibernation form, they hang silk threads in the forks or hollows of branches and stay still, but do not build hibernation nests.

[Takashi Shiramizu]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

昆虫綱鱗翅(りんし)目タテハチョウ科に属するチョウ。日本では北海道、本州に分布。北海道では渡島(おしま)半島南部に限り産するが、本州では青森県より岐阜・滋賀県境の伊吹(いぶき)山地にかけてやや広く分布する。外国では朝鮮半島、中国に分布し、アジア東部の特産種である。はねの開張78ミリメートル内外。日本産ミスジチョウ類のなかではもっとも大形の種で、前ばねの先端に白い斑紋(はんもん)があること、前ばね中室を走る白条にぎざぎざした切れ込みがあることでほかのミスジチョウ類とは容易に区別される。年1回の発生で、暖地では6月上・中旬より、山地や寒冷地では7～8月に出現する。山間の森林中には少なく、村落やその近辺に多い。これは、本種の好む食草が村落周辺に多く植栽されるためである。幼虫の食草はウメ、アンズ、スモモ、モモ、ユスラウメ、サクラ類などのバラ科植物で、成虫はこれら食草の樹上を旋回することが多い。越冬態は幼虫で、枝の分岐部やくぼみに糸をかけて静止し、越冬巣はつくらない。

［白水　隆］

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