ButterflyCircle : BBQ Time! @ Oh Farms

ButterflyCircle : BBQ Time! @ Oh Farms


The ButterflyCircle gang!

It was a dark and stormy night.... Well, the weather was not quite conducive on that Good Friday evening, 29 Mar 2013 for an alfresco barbecue party. But first. let's rewind the clock to some time late last year when we were talking about having a long-overdue gathering for ButterflyCircle members. Since the group was formed, we had a 'grand' number of only two big gatherings, both barbecues, at member Henry Koh's condominium in Aug 2008 and then a more recent one at Oh Farms when it was first set up. So it was about time we had another gathering soon.  Federick Ho suggested Good Friday as it was a public holiday and a long weekend.

Rain stopped, time for some action and food!  The BBQ pit at Oh Farms all ready for its maiden barbecue function

Preparations began and thanks to the super-efficient folks at Oh Farms, most of the yummy food was prepared and all the rest of us needed to bring were light snacks, drinks and not to forget beer, and our insatiable appetites! All in all, we had 22 members, the Oh Family and a few other guests making up a nice group of over 30 people who attended the barbecue.

Whilst some members chipped in to help set up the tables and food, others were too hungry to resist the yummy dinner! 


So who has the chubbiest cheeks??

It was ButterflyCircle's biggest social gathering so far - young and not-so-young, newbies and veterans, guys and gals. A few members, who were out of action for some time, also made the effort to join in.  After a morning butterfly shooting outing for some of the regulars, everyone was looking forward to the barbecue, when the skies decided to unleash its fury around late afternoon. It was a fierce tropical thunderstorm, complete with thunder and lightning.

Makan time!!  And our chef-du-excellence, Nancy, who kept the food coming along

Those of us who arrived early at Oh Farms were entertained in an nice airconditioned room and waited anxiously for the rain to stop. Whilst there was a wet-weather contingency plan, having a barbecue indoors won't be quite the same. Fortunately, at around 6:30pm, the skies cleared up to a nice cool and humid evening.

A small sample of the delicious food we were treated to that evening

Looking around the happy faces amongst the ButterflyCircle members that evening brought my mind back to late 2005, when the group was facing internal differences amongst some of the founding members. Eventually, a few of the more troublesome members were purged and the remaining group, which formed the majority of the members, split off to start a new group. I also recall that some time in Nov 2005, we had an online brainstorming session amongst the pioneer group members to find a new name for the group.

Uncle Sunny telling us the story of how he got that rare butt

On 17 Nov 2005, it was decided that the group be called ButterflyCircle. A domain was registered and after the requisite administrative applications were cleared, we were good to go! Originally, most of the members started off as macro photographers with a special interest in butterflies. Many were also members of a local photography forum, Clubsnap, who eventually joined ButterflyCircle and focused their efforts on butterfly photography and learning more about our winged jewels.


ButterflyCircle's youth wing members, CJ and Lemon

Over the years, the group grew in numbers as new people joined the forums, outings and social gatherings. We even had overseas members joining in the forums, and experts in specialised fields like early stages, identification and so on. Special mention has to be made of Dr TL Seow from Malaysia, who has been exceptionally invaluable for his knowledge in butterfly identification and sharing his experience with ButterflyCircle members. From our closest neighbours in Malaysia and Thailand we also have active members like Antonio Giudici, Les Day and LC Goh, with whom the Singapore members have often met up on outings in Malaysia and Thailand, and even further afield in other Asian countries.

Lady butts from ButterflyCircle

Then there are members from US, Hong Kong, India, Japan and other countries who pop in regularly to discuss topics related to butterflies. Of special mention are Keith Wolfe and William Folsom from the US, and David Fischer from Australia, who have contributed their time, knowledge and encouragement from time to time. Our 'sister' group, the Hong Kong Lepidopterists Society, visited us in June 2011 and they have reciprocated the hospitality to several ButterflyCircle members who visited Hong Kong.

Veteran members trying to 'poison' a newbie member

In the seven years that ButterflyCircle has been in existence, the group has continued to further its research in butterflies, and sharing information across the globe via its forum, blog and Facebook portals. The group also learned a lot of new things from others via this information exchange.

What's a BBQ without a Tiger??  CHEERS! And young Brian thinking how long he has to wait before he can drink beer legally

In terms of butterfly photography, there are very few groups or individuals who can match the excellent photographic achievements of the members of ButterflyCircle. The work of ButterflyCircle members never ceases to amaze laymen enthusiasts and experts alike - from discoveries to early stages to butterfly photography. Many of the results of the hard work and efforts have been captured in this blog since its maiden post in August 2007. The sustainability of this blog over the past five years has been through the efforts of Horace Tan (with his amazing work on early stages of butterflies) and the generous contributions of photographs from ButterflyCircle members.

The Old Boys' Club.  Those born later than 1960 need not apply

Coming back to the barbecue, it was excellent food (thanks, Yeok Keong, Ai Ling, Nancy and the rest of the Oh clan), great company and a most enjoyable evening for everyone. I believe most of us had more than our typical dinner as Ai Ling played a fantastic host and fed us continuously with her gastronimic delights. Thanks also go to Eng Chuan, Chng and others who brought the beer and drinks, Steven Neo for the wine, and CJ who brought some nice satay all the way from a famous stall in Clementi!

The Hungry One, looking forward to the next ButterflyCircle BBQ party!

As for the rest of us, we probably ate enough to burn off the calories of the next two days' outings over the long Easter weekend!  It was a great evening of warm camaraderie, catching up with old friends, making new ones and all with the common interest of butterflies! Thanks to everyone who turned up to make the occasion a success, and we look forward to the next ButterflyCircle social gathering, and we hope that it will be soon!

Text by Khew SK : Photos by Khew SK & Tan KY

Random Gallery - Bluebottle

Random Butterfly Gallery
The Common Bluebottle (Graphium sarpedon luctatius)

When butterfly season returns, particularly in Malaysia and Thailand, sandy riverbanks can be teeming with hundreds of puddling butterflies. When disturbed, the cloud of colour created by these flying jewels that leap into the air is absolutely breathtaking! In Singapore, such sights are rare, and on occasional instances, only up to a dozen puddling butterflies can be observed puddling together.

This shot, taken last weekend by ButterflyCircle member Simon Sng, shows a trio of Common Bluebottles puddling on a sandy streambank within the nature reserves of Singapore. All lined up and puddling in unison, the Bluebottles are sipping critical nutrients from the moist sand. This fast-flying species are much easier to photograph when they are distracted whilst puddling.

Random Gallery - Archduke

Random Butterfly Gallery
The Archduke (Lexias pardalis dirteana)

The Archduke is a robust-bodied and relatively large butterfly. The species prefers the shady forested understorey of the nature reserves and is rarely, if ever, found in urban parks and gardens. When alarmed they fly very fast at low levels just a few feet above the forest floor typically and stop with their wings opened flat. The Archduke displays sexual dimorphism (where the male and female of the species look very different).

The Archduke is often encountered feeding on fallen rotting fruit on the forest floor or foraging amongst the damp leaf litter in search of nutrients. This shot, taken by ButterflyCircle member Loke PF, shows both the male (left) and the female feeding on rotting pineapple bait on the forest floor in the nature reserves.

Life History of the Malay Tailed Judy

Life History of the Malay Tailed Judy (Abisara savitri savitri)

Butterfly Biodata:
Genus: Abisara C. & R. Felder, 1860
Species: savitri C. & R. Felder, 1860
Subspecies: savitri C. & R. Felder, 1860
Wingspan of Adult Butterfly: 40-50mm
Caterpillar Local Host Plants: Embelia ribes (Myrsinaceae), Embelia canescens (Myrsinaceae).

Physical Description of Adult Butterfly:

Above, the wings are rusty brown with two diffuse white transverse stripes on the forewing, the inner one being more sullied and stretching from mid-costa to the dorsum before the tornus. The hindwing has a similar diffuse white postdiscal band. There are two black marginal spots in spaces 4 and 5 on the hindwing separated by an orange bar. A long, white-tipped tail is present at the end of vein 4 on the hindwing. Underneath, the wings are similarly marked as per above but are more distinctly coloured with bright shades of white in the stripes set against a ground colour of yellowish brown. The basal halves of the wings are in a paler shade of yellowish brown.

Field Observations of Butterfly Behaviour:

The adults are moderately rare and are typically sighted in the forested areas of the nature reserves, and in a hill park where its host plant is growing in relative abundance. The timid and skittish adults are often seen perching on leaves with half open wings, turning and hopping from one perch to the next.

Random Gallery - Cycad Blue

Random Butterfly Gallery
The Cycad Blue (Chilades pandava pandava)

This little butterfly is common, especially in the vicinity of its caterpillar host plant, Cycas revoluta and other Cycad species. It can be found in urban parks and gardens, and in areas where various Cycads are planted - even in the nature reserves. At the main entrance of the Singapore Botanic Gardens, where two large trees of Cycas rumphii are present, the Cycad Blues are regularly seen fluttering around the plants, chasing each other in rapid flight.

This shot of a pristine Cycad Blue was taken last weekend by ButterflyCircle member Tea Yi Kai. The butterfly is perched on the edge of a Nepenthes tendril in Yi Kai's suburban garden. As long as pesticides are not used in urban parks and private gardens, butterflies are able to survive for the enjoyment of nature enthusiasts. We have often considered the wanton spraying of pesticides as 'weapons of mass destruction' because not only do these pesticides kill mosquitoes (albeit inefficiently) they destroy a large part of our urban biodiversity in the process!

Butterfly Bubbles

Butterfly Bubbles
Formation of bubble droplets when a Butterfly "pees"

When I was thinking of a title for this blog article, I had originally thought of a more catchy "Bubble Butts" or something to that effect.  However, a quick Google uncovered a series of rather uncomplimentary definitions that this particular pair of words alluded to, so I had to decide on a more decent title, lest this blog be subject to a more stringent censorship scrutiny!

Over the years of photographing butterflies, particularly those that were puddling, ButterflyCircle members have come across the puddlers forcefully excreting liquid from the business-ends of their abdomens. When puddling, it is quite obvious that butterflies take in copious amounts of mineral-enriched fluids that they require for various biological functions.


Jet-propelled FiveBar Swordtail!  The butterfly ejects a stream of fluids whilst puddling

The biological processing of these fluids within the bodies of the butterflies to extract the requisite minerals must be extremely efficient. Once the minerals are absorbed, the remaining fluids are ejected from the butterfly's body, so that there is no superfluous build-up of the excess fluids that the butterfly does not need.

The power of high speed photography -  A stream of droplets ejected from a puddling FiveBar Swordtail

However, it has been observed that in many cases, the excretion of the waste fluids is much slower, as the butterfly passes the fluids slowly, creating a droplet of fluid that remains attached to the tip of the abdomen of the butterfly. Given the viscosity of the liquid that the butterfly excretes, and the low speed at which the liquid forms, a droplet is formed.

Before we delve into the physics of the formation of drops of liquid, let us first recall the reasons why butterflies puddle.  In an earlier blog article, puddling was discussed. Adults of many butterflies, principally males, frequent mud puddles, stream banks that have been contaminated with animal excretions, carrions and bird droppings where their imbibe sodium, chlorides and nitrates that are essential to their biological functions. A study showed that virgin females have reduced longevity. This is attributed to virgins not obtaining important nutrients which the males transfer to females during mating.

When settled down to puddle, some butterflies can remain still for long periods of time, often to their own detriment, as they become vulnerable to nearby predators. At times, their preoccupation with puddling can prove fatal. We have observed, for example along forest road in Malaysia, where puddling butterflies are so engrossed in puddling, that they even forget to fly out of the way of an oncoming vehicle's tyres!

A Burmese Batwing forms a little bubble of fluid (taken in Thailand)

Butterflies from the families Papilionidae, Pieridae, Lycaenidae, Hesperiidae, and to a lesser extent, Nymphalidae, engage in puddling activities. In many instances, the process of excreting the excess fluids from the abdomen has been photographed. Besides the jets of fluid excreted, we have often observed the formation of small bubbles of fluid oozing out from the tip of the abdomens of butterflies.

In physics, a drop is a small column of liquid, bounded completely or almost completely by free surfaces. A drop may form when liquid accumulates at the lower end of a tube or other surface boundary, producing a hanging drop called a pendant drop.  When a butterfly excretes the liquid that flows slowly from its anal tube, the liquid forms a drop due to surface tension. A simple way to form a drop is to allow liquid to flow slowly from the lower end of a vertical tube of small diameter.

Source : Wikipedia

The surface tension of the liquid causes the liquid to hang from the tube, forming a pendant. When the drop exceeds a certain size it is no longer stable and detaches itself. The falling liquid is also a drop held together by surface tension. As the drop detaches itself from where it previously hung, surface tension will pinch it and the drop falls as a sphere.

Top : A drop of water falls off after exceeding a certain size when gravity exceeds surface tension forces. (© Wikipedia) Bottom : An Eurema simulatrix excretes a drop of fluid from its abdomen

In butterflies, it is interesting to observe the variations of the size of the drops of excreted fluids before they detach from the anal tube. There doesn't appear to be any direct relation of the size of the droplet to the size of the butterfly. In many cases, the smaller butterflies hold much larger droplets in relation to the size of the butterfly.

The drop of fluid can vary in clarity from crystal clear and totally transparent, to a muddy and cloudy constituency. This is probably dependent on the fluids that the butterfly is feeding on, or the process of digestion that the fluids go through in the alimentary canal of the butterfly.

Two examples of slightly cloudy/murky drops of excretion, compared to the usually crystal clear drop

When feeding on bird droppings, the Hesperiidae exhibit an interesting phenomenon of "recycling" their excretion.  With its proboscis extended whilst feeding on a bird dropping, a skipper has often been observed to arch its abdomen and deposit a drop of its own excreted fluid onto the bird dropping and then feeding off the mixture. It repeats the process as it adds its own excretions to the bird dropping to wet it, and then feeds for extended periods of time in this manner, if not disturbed.

Skippers recycling their pee onto the bird dropping that they are feeding on

Amongst the puddlers, butterfly species from the families Papilionidae, Pieridae, Lycaenidae and Hesperiidae tend to display the "bubble drop" phenomenon as they puddle. Of those Nymphalidae that do puddle, we have rarely come across any of the species retaining a bubble at its abdomen. Could it be perhaps that they imbibe smaller amounts of fluid as they puddle? Or maybe they have a slower metabolic process that retains in their bodies, most of the fluids that they imbibe?

In the meantime, keep observing and recording any interesting notes that could yield a better understanding of this simple phenomenon and how each different species of butterfly displays different behaviour. Click on the individual photos for a larger view of these bubbles on the butterflies.

Text by Khew SK : Photos by Chng CK, Antonio Giudici, Khew SK, Koh CH, Loke PF, Lemon Tea, Anthony Wong & Mark Wong

Random Gallery - Yamfly

Random Butterfly Gallery
The Yamfly (Loxura atymnus fuconius)

In nature photography, and in particular butterfly photography, the result of a great shot is often a combination of knowing the subject, its habitat and environment, lots of patience and a good dose of luck! At times, it also depends on the photographer's ability to "see" beyond the obvious, and create quick compositions in his mind's eye, whenever an opportunity presents itself - even for a fleeting moment.

In this case, the artistic quality of this shot far outweighs the butterfly itself, because a photographer can seldom dictate the pose of his subject, nor determine exactly where it will land. The three curved leaves of the ferns draws the observer's eye towards the left and beyond the frame of the shot, but the subtle intersecting overlaps of the leaves suggest that they belong to the same plant, even though the main plant is out of sight. The butterfly sitting on the middle leaf gives a well-balanced composition to the shot, whilst its facing towards the left aligns with the directional curves of the leaves towards the left of the frame. The contrasting orange butterfly on the lime green background presents an eye-pleasing colour combination. A well-executed shot by ButterflyCircle member Sunny Chir. Never mind that the butterfly itself has lost one of its tails. In a perfect world, that would have been the icing on the cake that would make this an award-winning shot.