Lethal mutations in Euphydryas aurinea beckeri (Lederer, 1853) (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) from Sierra Blanca, Malaga, Spain

Abstract

Two Euphydryas aurinea beckeri females from Sierra Blanca, Malaga, Spain were captured and returned to the U.K.; each laid a single egg batch on Succisa pratensis. Both batches hatched and the resulting larvae were reared through to adulthood. One group of larvae produced butterflies with three different mutations: pupae with spines, legs lacking distal tarsals and claws, and with appendages attached to the genitalia which protruded though the rear of the abdomens in both males and females. The other group of larvae produced normal males and females.