Mourning Cloak

Mourning Cloak and Camberwell Beauty are common names for Nymphalis antiopa. Vanessa antiopa is an older generic combination. [1]

The upperwings are deep maroon, with powder-blue spots in a black band inside a yellow margin. The dark, mottled underside retains a pale marginal band. Mature caterpillars are black with branched spines, white speckling and reddish-orange dorsal patches. [1]

The species is widespread in North America and Eurasia. California records extend from the Sacramento Valley into the Sierra Nevada. [1][2]

Unmated adults overwinter and reproduce in spring. Eggs are placed in dense clusters around host stems; young larvae feed together. In much of the range there is one annual generation. [1]

Larvae feed chiefly on willows and poplars; elms and hackberries are also used. Adults frequently visit sap and injured fruit. In California, spring adults also use willow catkins and autumn adults visit rabbitbrush. [1][2]

In the Sacramento Valley, a spring brood produces adults that migrate upslope and breed in the mountains. The following generation returns downslope in late September and October. Territorial activity can begin in late winter before trees leaf out. [2]

Larval parasitoids include tachinid flies and several groups of parasitic wasps. Communal larvae respond to disturbance by twitching together. [1]

Keep the enclosure closed and display it in indirect light, away from heat and damp conditions. Handle the frame by its edges and clean only its exterior according to the maker’s instructions.