Clouded Yellow (Wild Animals by Papo)

I started collecting insects when I was in Junior High School, so roughly 1984 or so. Like most beginners, I collected conspicuous and familiar species in my neighborhood, including of course butterflies and moths. Among the Lepidoptera my favorites were members of the family Pieridae, commonly referred to as whites, yellows, sulfurs, and orange-tips due to their delicate off-whites and pastel oranges and yellows. In fact, it is believed the word ‘butterfly’ originated from European pierids that were the color of butter, hence ‘butter flying’! I think it was these colors that drew me to the pierids, as I have never been wowed by flashy metallic leps. As I glance at my database, I have figures of 15 species of Pieridae, including today’s clouded yellow (Colias croceus), a new species introduced to the toy market earlier this year by Papo.

The clouded yellow is widespread in the Western Palearctic, including much of Europe, North Africa, Turkey, the Middle East, and central Siberia. It is absent from much of Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent. It breeds primarily in the warmer areas of the Mediterranean and the Middle East. The species occurs in meadows, fields, coastal cliffs, agricultural fields, parks, and gardens, usually in open areas. Larvae feed on a wide variety of plants in the family Fabaceae and related leguminous plants. Adults take nectar from a variety of flowers, including thistles, knapweeds, dandelion, fleabane, vetches, and ragwort. Depending on climate and host plant availability, there may be 1-3 generations a year.

Papo’s rendition of the clouded yellow has a wingspan of 7.5 cm, for an average scale of 1.5:1 (1.6:1-1.4:1). In case anyone is wondering, yes, the sculpt is merely a repaint of the 2020 monarch by Papo. On the plus side, it means that the six legs is actually accurate for this species. On the down side, the wing shape is not accurate for C. croceus. Still, the slight inaccuracy in the wing shape is somewhat overshadowed by the fantastic paint job! The clouded yellow is sexually dimorphic and this figure is painted after a male (the female would have yellow maculae within the broad brown lateral margins of the wings). Also, like the aforementioned monarch, and the 2021 Old World swallowtail I reviewed a couple weeks ago, Papo made a good attempt to paint the underside of the wings as they appear in the actual animal, instead of duplicating the dorsal pattern or leaving monochromatic.

For collectors of interesting species, this figure comes highly recommended. It is unique, and being a recent release, it should be readily available at a decent price.