Southern Gatekeeper (Pyronia cecilia)
2011 photos highlighted in green. Click on any photo to go to an enlarged picture, or simply scroll down the page.
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| 2375_male_Var_7Jul06 | 02_31-19_female_Var_Jun02 | 2294_male_Var_4Jul06 |
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| 2391_male?_Var_7Jul06 | 23491_female_Var_1Sep10 |
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Cecilia is superficially quite similar the Gatekeeper (P. tithonus), but there are a number of clear differentiators. The unh are completely different, cecilia being lighter with a clear discal line and no small white ocelli. The female cecilia upperside is extensively orange, especially the uph, and there is no ocellus at the anal angle; the forewings are convex (tithonus is slightly concave) and the upperside margins are whiter. |
In the male, the cecilia uph orange is also more extensive, but the key is that the upf brown androconial patch is transected by the orange veins. Cecilia is generally smaller and rounder, and is generally a butterfly of the hotter regions even though it seems to spend most of its time trying to escape the intense heat by staying in the shade of the undergrowth. |
| ref | sex |
observations |
alt. m |
| 2375 | M |
a typical male, the orange veins clearly transecting the brown area of forewing cell. |
60 |
| 02_31-19 | F |
a female. |
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| 2294 | M |
a male. The unh discal line is strong, and the white band is clear, wide, and well developed, tending to pale yellow in s3. |
230 |
| 2391 | M |
a male(?), based on the markings and limited hindwing scalloping, and the hindwing shape. |
60 |
| 23491 | F |
a female, as indicated by the roundness of the hindwing at the anal angle and because the upperside was seen. |
30 |
