Butterflies are often grouped into two main feeding types as adults: nectar-feeders and fruit-feeders. Nectar-feeding butterflies typically get their food from flower nectar (some also eat pollen) and make up the majority of butterfly species, covering all butterfly families, such as Hedylidae, Hesperiidae, Lycaenidae, Nymphalidae, Papilionidae, Pieridae, and Riodinidae. Fruit-feeding butterflies, on the other hand, rely mostly on fermented fruit, animal droppings, and plant sap, and make up around 50-75% of the Nymphalidae family.
These fruit-feeding butterflies are found in four subfamilies, and within them, 13 tribes occur in Brazil. In the Biblidinae subfamily, we have tribes like Ageroniini, Biblidini, Callicorini, Epicaliini, and Epiphilini. The Charaxinae subfamily includes Anaeini and Preponini tribes. The Coeini tribe is the only fruit-feeding one in the Nymphalinae subfamily. Finally, in the Satyrinae subfamily, we have Morphini, Melanitini, Brassolini, Haeterini, and Satyrini.
Ecological studies and monitoring projects focused on understanding species distribution and diversity over time are increasingly turning to fruit-feeding butterflies as models. They’re very sensitive to environmental changes, have short lifespans, and react quickly to disruptions—either through changes in species numbers or shifts in which species are present. Using baited traps to collect these butterflies is also easy to standardize, which is helpful for comparing data across different locations or years. Plus, they have a relatively well-defined taxonomy, which is rare for insects and other very diverse groups.
Most species have different subspecies, but in this guide, butterflies were identified at the species level to keep things simple and make it easier to use for monitoring. Detailed characteristics of each tribe will be included in the guide, and relevant information about each group or species is provided in the species pages.
In some conservation areas, certain species haven't been recorded yet, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t live there. Longer-term monitoring, ideally throughout the year, is needed to confirm whether a species or group is truly absent in a specific area.
With their vibrant colors and fascinating life cycle (metamorphosis), butterflies are not only beautiful but also excellent for environmental education. Their appeal can help foster empathy for the environment, promoting biodiversity conservation. In this guide, we present photos of each butterfly’s dorsal and ventral views, species names, their tribe and subfamily, the author and year of description, size scale, conservation areas where they’ve been recorded, the family of host plants for each species, and relevant references for the species or genus. If a species shows sexual dimorphism (where males and females have different wing patterns), we’ll mark the sex of each butterfly with symbols shown below.
