Reference photo of a pinned Hypolimnas bolina specimen, upper side

Reference photo

Photo: Yale Peabody Museum; photo by Paul Shamble 2011 · Yale Peabody Museum (Entomology) · CC0 1.0 (cropped and resized). Not the specimen in Lucy’s drawer.

Tray 20 of 39

Hypolimnas bolina

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Order by November 30 for delivery by Christmas.

Your framed specimen is a different individual of the same species, chosen and mounted by Lucy.

  • Nymphalidae
  • Butterfly
Catalog label
Family
Nymphalidae
Subfamily
Nymphalinae
Tribe
Junoniini
Where it lives
India, Ceylon, Burma, AU, S.Arabia, Madagascar.

From the catalog of Lucy Garcia Salik, PhD. A mounted specimen from a licensed supplier.

Research notes

From published sources, not from Lucy’s catalog. Each note lists where it came from.

Description

The two sexes look clearly different. On the upper side, males are black with a large white patch in the middle of each wing and a smaller white spot near the tip of each forewing. Each white patch has a violet-blue ring that can look different depending on the angle of the light. Females have less sharp, less shiny markings and vary a lot from place to place. Some look like males, some mix black and brown tones, and some carry orange patches. The underside markings are much the same in both sexes.

Where it lives

Researchers describe this butterfly as widespread across the Indo-Australian region. One natural history museum names Asia, Australia, New Zealand and Madagascar as part of its native area. A second museum gives South and Southeast Asia as its place of origin. The sources do not fully agree on how far the range extends.

How the adults behave

Males are bold and stay loyal to one spot. Each male claims a perch, often on the outer leaves of a low branch beside an open area, and uses it as a lookout for females. When something flies past, he darts out to check it. Males chase their own kind, other butterflies, other insects and even passing birds, then go back to the same perch or one nearby. A male often keeps the same site from one day to the next. Males are active on clear, sunny days and disappear when it is windy or rainy. Adults also look for salty moisture, because flower nectar does not give them enough of certain minerals.

Life cycle

Like other butterflies, it goes through four stages: egg, caterpillar, chrysalis and adult. Females place their eggs on the undersides of leaves. Observers report that females check plants for ants before laying, and some have been seen staying near their eggs, which may help keep ants and parasitic wasps away. Parental care like this is unusual among butterflies. The chrysalis is tan and brown, with a texture that makes it look like a dried leaf or a bit of wood.

Look-alikes

Some females look like the common crow butterfly, which is not a close relative and tastes bad to predators. One idea is that this disguise works best when only some of the population carries it. Males can be confused with a related eggfly, Hypolimnas misippus, which has similar white spots ringed with violet.

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