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nzButterfly.info > New Zealand Species > Resident Species > Coppers > Rauparaha's Copper

Rauparaha's Copper

Mokarakare

Lycaena rauparaha

Scientific Classification More info Family Lycaenidae SubFamily Lycaeninae Tribe Lycaenini Genus Lycaena Taxon rauparaha

Description

A native species of Butterfly that still needs farther study & whose life history is not well known. (See bottom of page for unanswered questions). It is named after Te Rauparaha as it is found along the same coastline associated with this man. It is the most consistent Copper for wing pattern & colouring unlike the extremely variable Common Copper or the slightly variable Glade Copper, however it's younger stages are almost identical. Like the Boulder & Glade Copper, the Rauparaha's Copper doesn't travel much more then 20-50 metres from areas of the larval foodplant. All the coppers are all suffering from Wasp predation, especially paper wasps, as they are a good source of protein for the wasp's developing larvae. If you live near the right coastline, then attracting Rauparaha's Coppers to your garden is fairly easy, just grow some Wire Vine - Pohuehue (Muehlenbeckia spp) & a plant a few nectar plants which have flowers at the end of stems as these are more favoured by the Copper Butterflies as landing sites.

Ovum  In English

Laid on underside of foodplant leaves near the edge. Usually located on projecting branches or shoots of the foodplant & on mature leaves. Greenish-blue in colour & look like a tiny flattened sphere with white ridges. The period the ovum takes to hatch is unknown still. I did keep the ovum in the photo to rear, but it never hatched.

Larvae  In English

Velvety green in colour. It has it's legs & head covered by fleshy side flanges (giving it a Woodlouse shape), it appears to have a slow slug-like movement. You need a hand-lens to be able to tell them apart from the Common Copper. Overwinters after 1st instar moult. Since the foodplant is partly deciduous, it is suspected that the larvae move to a sheltered spot near the base of the foodplant & either spend the winter in a quiescence or diapause Feeding resumes when foodplant growth starts. These overwintering larvae go on to pupate in October.

Pupa  In English

Greenish-yellow with reddish-brown wing cases & have pale-brown eye-colouration. But they don't have the black spots on the abdomen like the Common Copper which they are very similar to. They hide amongst dry litter or stones on the ground usually protected by a dried leaf which they attach themselves to by cremaster & has some silken strands in place of a girdle over it's thorax to help secure it. Pupation is suspected to last 18 to 20 days, but this can be longer. They are very difficult to find in the wild, which is not helped by the foodplant as it forms a dense mat to the ground.

Imago  In English

The imago has a 25-31mm wingspan. It has a soft golden copper gleam with a larger patch of copper colouration with fainter vein markings in the middle of the upperside of the forewings, then other Coppers. It has single thin veins which distinguish it from the Common Copper. Also the females of Rauparaha's Copper don't have any blue wing edges. It's not as dark as the Glade Copper. The underside of the wings are variable from the mustard colouration similar to the Common Copper to the brownish colouration found on the Glade Copper variation. There is some sexual dimorphism in Rauparaha's Copper as the females have more black markings on the upperside of the wings especially towards the wing bases. The males have more golden-copper scales towards the wing bases. Flies strongly close to ground in a rapid & jerky flight. If in the same habitat, they can seen flying with Common & Glade Coppers apart from January when the Glade Copper is very scarce. They usually come to rest on a projecting stem of vegetation or a flower (especially Blackberry flowers). I suspect they have a constant cycle of all lifestages from November to March similar to the Red & Yellow Admirals.

Habitat

It prefers coastal dunes with mixed vegetation. They can also be found in other coastal areas if their larval foodplant is present.

Status & Distribution

Common In the North Island it can be found on western & northern coastline, it also can be found in most of the Hauraki Gulf islands & Three Kings Islands. Meanwhile on the South Island, it is found from Golden Bay to Northern Canterbury. It seems to follow a few rivers upstream in the South Island, namely the Wangapeka, Waihopai & Ashley (all the way to the gorge). It was first noted by Mr Fereday in Christchurch, but it has not been seen in Christchurch for several decades now. But since it's foodplant is becoming a fashionable native bush to grow, it could quite possibly increase in numbers with some good habitat management of sand dunes & reserves.

Food Plants

Only recorded on Pohuehue (Muehlenbeckia complexa) & Creeping Pohuehue (Muehlenbeckia axillaris), but I suspect that it would also use Large-leafed Pohuehue (Muehlenbeckia australis).

Lifecycle

Note: there is possible inaccuracies for the egg, larvae & pupation stages as this is based on the Common Copper.
nzButterfly.info has had sightings from late August 2009 in eastern Northland.

Unknown Facts

The Rauparaha's Copper is a species of Butterfly that still needs a great deal of study.

Unanswered questions are;

• How long is the period the ovum take to mature?
• How long is the period the larvae take to mature? or is it the same as the Common Copper.
• Where do the larvae prefer to overwinter?
• How long is the period the pupae take to mature?
• Distinguishing features for larvae & pupae from the other Coppers.
• Is the lifecycle identical to the Common Copper?
• Are there any natural parasites of the larvae or pupae?
• Do they have distinctive generations as most literature suggests or do they have constant generations during summer months like the Red & Yellow Admirals?
• Any regional variance in appearance times for the imagos?
• Courtship behaviours?
• The scarce evidence recorded suggests that the larvae have a winter quiescence. Or do they normally have something similar to a diapause?

Please contact nzButterfly.info if you can answer any of the above questions.

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