About the Lyside Sulphur
Kricogonia lyside, the lyside sulphur or guayacan sulphur, is a North American, Caribbean, and South American butterfly in the family Pieridae. In seasons with heavy monsoons, this butterfly is seen in massive migrations which are frequent in Texas but more rare in the southwest. It is also an occasional resident in southern Florida.
The lyside sulphur is variable. The upperside of the wings is pale yellow, usually with a black bar on the leading edge of the hindwing and a bright yellow patch near the base of the forewing. Some individuals also have black borders along the costa and apex of the forewing. The underside of the wings varies from a greenish color to bright yellow to almost white. Greener individuals have a whitish vein in the center of the hindwing and a bright yellow forewing basal patch. It has a wingspan of 3.8 to 6 cm (1.5 to 2.4 in).
Similar species in the lyside sulphur's range include Queen Alexandra's sulphur (Colias alexandra), the cloudless sulphur (Phoebis sennae), and the statira sulphur (Aphrissa statira). Queen Alexandra's sulphur has more yellow on the underside of the forewing and has a whitish spot in the... Wikipedia →