| Common Windmill | |
|---|---|
| Common Windmill | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Papilionidae |
| Genus: | Atrophaneura |
| Species: | A. polyeuctes |
| Binomial name | |
| Atrophaneura polyeuctes Doubleday, 1842 |
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| Synonyms | |
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Atrophaneura philoxenus Gray |
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The Common Windmill Atrophaneura polyeuctes is the most common member in India of the Windmills group of Atrophaneura, comprising tailed black swallowtail butterflies with white spots and red submarginal crescents.
Accordingly it has been dealt with in more detail than the other windmills.
Contents |
Pakistan, Northern India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, northern Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, southern China (including Yunnan) and Taiwan.
In India, the Himalayas from Kashmir to Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh onto northern Myanmar.
Overall, the butterfly is not rare. It is common in parts of Sikkim but becomes rarer westwards. It is extremely scarce in Shimla though not rare from Kangra west to Jammu and Kashmir.
It has five subspecies, two of which occur in India :-
This butterfly prefers forests and woods. Frequents river valleys. It occurs at low elevations (1000 to 5000 feet) in North East India but is found at higher altitudes in the western extent of its range - up to 11,000 feet in Kashmir.
This butterfly has a leisurely flight high above, but is easily recognisable by the thin long fore and hindwings. It is attracted to flowers and visits Clemanthe, Buddleia, Lantana and Rhododendron blossoms.
It is mimicked by a day flying moth Epicopa (or Epicopia) polydorus, which flies at the same period and over the same range as the Common Windmill and has much the same manner and habits.
Has several broods where it finds suitable climate. Seen on the wing between April and September. The imago has a foul odour.