Papilio ulysses

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"Mountain Blue" redirects here. For pigment, see Azurite.

Ulysses butterfly

Male
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Papilionidae
Genus:	Papilio
Species:	P. ulysses
Binomial name
*Papilio ulysses* Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies
P. u. autolycus C.Felder & R.Felder, 1865 P. u. denticulatus Joicey & Talbot, 1916 P. u. dirce Jordan, 1909 P. u. jennifeae Jakusch, 2007 P. u. ulysses Linnaeus, 1758

The Ulysses butterfly (Papilio ulysses), also known as the Blue Mountain Butterfly or the Blue Mountain Swallowtail, is a large swallowtail butterfly, endemic to Australasia.

This butterfly is used as an emblem for Queensland tourism.

Etymology

Copulating adults. The larger one above is the female.

Ulysses is the Roman name for the Greek hero, Odysseus, a character in ancient Greek literature, the central character of Homer's Odyssey.

Distribution

The Ulysses butterfly inhabits a portion of northeastern Australia (eastern Queensland) and is also found in other places alike; New Guinea, the Moluccas, Bismarck Archipelago and northwestern Solomon Islands. New Caledonia is instead inhabited by the similar relative, Papilio montrouzieri.

Description

P. ulysses caterpillar

The Ulysses butterfly typically has a wingspan of about 14 cm (5.5 in), but depending on subspecies has some variations in size. The upperside of the wings are an iridescent electric blue; the underside is a more subdued black and brown. The colours are produced by the microscopic structure of the scales, a phenomenon called structural coloration.^[1]

The female of the species is different from the male in that she has little crescents of blue in the back, upside sections of her hind wings, where there is only black for males. When the butterfly is perched the intense blue of its wings is hidden by the plainer brown under side of its wings, helping it to blend in with its surroundings. When in flight, the butterfly can be seen hundreds of metres away as sudden bright blue flashes. Males are strongly attracted to the colour blue, including blue objects which are sometimes mistaken for females.

Diet and Conservation

Conservation

The Ulysses butterfly inhabits tropical rainforest areas and suburban gardens. The Australian government requires breeders to obtain permits, although the species is not endangered. In the past, this butterfly had been threatened but planting Pink Flowered Doughwood has increased its numbers. Reduction in the number of the Euodia trees, a tree heavily used for laying eggs and for leaves eaten by caterpillars, may threaten the survival of this butterfly. Females favour small trees up to 2 metres tall to lay their eggs.

Diet

Foods for this butterfly include: kerosene wood and a variety of citrus plants. In Australia, the Ulysses butterfly's food is the blossoms of the Pink Flowered Doughwood, a tree with clusters of small pink flowers that extrude from its branches.^[2]

References

↑ P. Vukusic, J. R. Sambles, C. R. Lawrence, R. J. Wootton (2001) Sculpted-multilayer optical effects in two species of Papilio butterfly. Applied Optics 40:1116-1125
↑ http://animals.pawnation.com/migration-ulysses-butterfly-6901.html

External links

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Wikispecies has information related to: Papilio ulysses

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