Butterflies of South-West Saudi Arabia
by Dr. Graham R. Lobley
It may come as a complete surprise to most people to learn that
the Arabian peninsula is home to more than 150 different species
of butterflies. Many of these, including some of the most beautiful,
can be found in the mountains and lowlands of the Hejaz and Asir
Provinces in the west and southwest of the Kingdom.
Even Jeddah boasts an excellent selection of the largest, most
colourful and exotic species. The butterflies are attracted by
the widespread flowering plants and shrubs present throughout
the city – in residential villas, housing compounds, hotel gardens
and public areas such as parks and roadside margins. Although
some of these butterflies are migrants, coming to Jeddah only
under favourable weather conditions, the remarkable ‘greening’
of the city has transformed the habitat, resulting in several
species being apparently resident throughout the year. In effect,
this new habitat has formed a rich oasis for butterflies as well
as for other forms of natural life, such as birds.
There are many intriguing and unique aspects to butterflies. The
tiny scales on butterflies’ wings are individually coloured and
make up the particular wing patterns of each species, thus forming
some of the most beautiful patterns to be found in the natural
world.
Two of the most colourful butterflies, the Plain Tiger Danaus
chrysippus and the Diadem Hypolimnas misippus also have remarkably
fascinating life styles. The caterpillar of the Plain Tiger feeds
on plants of the milkweed family, such as Calotropis procera,
which is common all along the Tihama coastal plains. The milkweed
food plant contains cardiac toxins and these are transferred to
the tissue of the adult butterfly. These toxins afford excellent
protection against attack from vertebrate predators, such as birds
and lizards.
The female Diadem has evolved into a near-perfect copy of the
Plain Tiger, thus escaping attack from predators that already
know from bitter experience to avoid the Plain Tiger. Entomologists
call species which copy others mimics. So visually indistinguishable
are the model and mimic that even the male Diadem is sometimes
fooled by a passing specimen of Plain Tiger and may spend some
time courting an individual of the wrong species! The male Diadem
is a very attractive butterfly, which has a quite different appearance.
The male has jet black wings with prominent white egg-shaped spots,
which are fringed with brilliant purple.
The large African Lime Papilio demodocus is another striking butterfly
which is common in Jeddah and in the greener wadis in the foothills
and mountains. This exotic species is common throughout tropical
Africa, where it can even become a pest as the primary food plant
of the caterpillars are the leaves of citrus trees. It is often
seen in Jeddah’s gardens where a favourite flower is the bougainvillea,
which is a widespread and colourful component of most green areas.
The drier Tihama lowlands are normally a less productive butterfly
habitat. Some species of ‘Whites’ such as the Yellow Patch White
Colotis halimede are adapted to these more arid areas and range
across Africa’s Sahel, south of the Sahara Desert. This species
often settles on bare earth. Strong migrant butterflies such as
the Caper White Anaphaeis aurota and Painted Lady Vanessa cardui
can sometimes be seen on the Tihama in large numbers. The Caper
White is a distinctive black-patterned white, which ranges across
the whole of the Arabian peninsula and migrants sometimes reach
the Eastern Mediterranean. In Spring, I enjoyed seeing large numbers
avidly feeding on the nectar of magenta coloured Limonium flowers
right by the Red Sea. The Painted Lady is easily the world’s most
widely distributed butterfly, reaching all continents except Antarctica.
A powerful migrant, I once witnessed huge numbers of this species
passing up a scarp wadi, following a period of good winter rains.
Most butterflies are especially attracted to feeding on flower
nectar and several larger Afrotropical species are relatively
easily seen in Jeddah’s more luxuriant and established gardens.
The best natural habitats for butterflies in Saudi Arabia are
the southwestern mountain wadis, which have a relatively wide
variety of green vegetation and flowers, especially after good
winter rains. Such locations have the largest number of species.
It is not uncommon to see around twenty different species in particularly
productive habitats. As butterflies are heavily dependent on flowers
and caterpillar food plants, these sites are also very rich in
natural flora. Some of the best areas of all are in the verdant
wadis beneath the towering escarpment mountains, west of Abha
in Asir. These wadis benefit from a relatively regular and periodic
rainfall pattern on the escarpment mountains.
The rich wadis and surrounding hill sides are home to the exciting
Acraeas and Charaxes butterflies. Acraeas are attractive butterflies
with rich tawny wings with black spots and wing borders. In some
ways superficially resembling the fritillaries of more temperate
climates, such as Europe, Acraeas are Afrotropical species with
an elegant, strong flight. Doubleday’s Acraea Acraea doubledayi
often glides for considerable distances on fully extended wings,
in between powerful wing beats.
Butterflies in Saudi Arabia can sometimes be seen feeding in the
moist sediments near water, supplementing their regular diet with
additional minerals. Some species, such as Charaxes rarely feed
on flower nectar, preferring rotting fruit or meat. The unmistakable
Cream Bordered Charaxes Charaxes hansali has two prominent tails
on each hind wing and a beautifully marbled underside wing pattern.
This striking large butterfly ranges through parts of East Africa
into southwestern Arabia and there is also a distinct subspecies
which is limited to the scarp slope of the Dhofar mountains of
Oman. This butterfly has a powerful flight and is usually very
wary. Consequently, I was elated when a perfect specimen once
landed on a friend’s clothing, perhaps attracted by the pattern
and colour.
As long as favourable habitats remain, or arise temporarily, the
gorgeous butterflies to be found in western Saudi Arabia will
continue to provide strong interest and enjoyment for keen butterfly
watchers.