08 November 2009

Chrysalis of Idea leuconoe - the Paper Kite (or Rice Paper) butterfly


I don't know the species, but it must be tropical and beautiful.

Credit, via.

Addendum: Dominique suggests Aporia crataegi - the Black-veined White. To my surprise this is a temperate zone butterfly, but it does have a huge range. Perhaps the color intensity varies from the gentle color at the link to the bold color shown here depending on location, food plant etc. It certainly isn't camouflaged, so it must not taste very good...

Second Addendum: Darren's suggestion of Idea leuconoe looks like the best answer. It's a Southeast Asian Danainae - a relative of the Monarch and Queen. Here's the butterfly stage:

2 comments:

  1. DominiqueNovember 9, 2009 at 1:34 PM

    Maybe Aporia crataegi ?
    Looks very much like http://www.diaphnature.com/insectes/insectes.htm and http://www.flickr.com/photos/clarabena/3595390730/

    ReplyDelete
  2. DarrenNovember 10, 2009 at 9:46 PM

    The chrysalis looks like a milkweed butterfly chrysalis. Perhaps it is Idea leuconoe, the Rice paper butterfly. Or some other member of that genus.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idea_leuconoe

    ReplyDelete