A non-appealing plant for appealing lepidopterans: the case of Telminostelma foetidum (Cav.) Fontella & E.A.Schwarz as host-plant for Danaus gilippus, D. eresimus (Nymphalidae: Danainae) and Euchaetes mitis (Erebidae: Arctiinae) in Oaxaca, Mexico

Milkweeds, despite their toxicity, support a complex and diverse community of specialised herbivore insects, from sap-sucking aphids to leaf-chewing caterpillars and beetles. In the case of butterflies, milkweeds are the feeding plants of the iconic Monarch butterfly and the rest of the milkweed butterflies (Nymphalidae: Danainae). This plant–insect relationship represents one of the most remarkable examples of herbivorous exploitation and plant defence evolution. For the neotropical milkweed butterflies, numerous host plants have been reported inside several genera and species of Apocynaceae. However, new observations still appear. In this work, we report for the first time Telminostelma foetidum as a host plant for two Danaus species and for the Erebidae Euchaetes mitis in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca, Mexico. We also report novel observations of an adult of D. eresimus as a flower visitor of T. foetidum besides the already known honey bee. We discuss the importance of native milkweeds in the maintenance of the urban population of milkweed butterflies and moths.