Random Gallery - Common Mormon

Random Butterfly Gallery
The Common Mormon (Papilio polytes romulus)

The Common Mormon is a relatively common butterfly in Singapore. This swallowtail is found in urban parks and gardens, although it is fairly often seen in forested areas as well. Its caterpillars feed on the cultivated Murraya koenigii or Indian Curry Leaf, as well as another wild grown species of the same genus.  Other Citrus plants are also known host plants. The upperside of the Common Mormon is predominantly black with a series of whitish spots running across the hindwing forming a band. The female is polymorphic with the form-polytes mimicking the Common Rose, presumably for protection against predators.

Males of the species are often encountered puddling on damp sandy streambanks which have been tainted with decomposing organic matter. When puddling, the forewings of the butterfly flap rapidly, whilst the hindwings are held still.  This shot of a puddling Common Mormon was taken at a park connector near a nature area by ButterflyCircle member Huang CJ, who managed a sharp shot of the Common Mormon whilst achieving a smooth green background which contrasts pleasantly with the black wings of the butterfly.

Random Gallery - Hieroglyphic Flat

Random Butterfly Gallery
The Hieroglyphic Flat (Odina hieroglyphica ortina)

This pretty black-and-orange skipper is moderately rare, but is widespread in distribution across Singapore where it can be found regularly in urban parks and gardens as well as in the forested nature reserves.  At certain times of the day, it zips around rapidly, sometimes in dogfights with another individual of the same species.  It has a habit of flying and then hiding on the underside of a leaf with its wings opened flat.  The caterpillar of this butterfly feeds on Erycibe tomentosa and its life history has been recorded here.

This Hieroglyphic Flat was shot by ButterflyCircle member Nelson Ong last weekend after the skipper had its fill of the nectar from a flowering Syzygium tree.  At times, the skipper can be found feeding on bird droppings on the forest floor or on leaves.  It will return time and again to its food source even when disturbed.

Random Gallery - White Spotted Palmer

Random Butterfly Gallery
The White Spotted Palmer (Eetion elia)

This medium sized skipper is moderately rare in Singapore, appearing more often in the forested nature reserves.  It is often found lurking in shaded heavily forested areas, resting on the top surfaces of leaves.  When there is a flowering tree, particularly of the Syzygium spp, the White Spotted Palmer can be seen zipping rapidly amongst the flowers and feeding greedily.

The skipper is dark brown above with white hyaline spots. In the male, the white dorsal area on the hindwing is less extensive than in the female.  The whitened basal half of the underside of the hindwing is distinctive in this species and it is quite easily identified without much doubt.  The abdomen is white banded above and entirely white beneath.  The life history of this butterfly has been recorded here. This shot of a pristine White Spotted Palmer was taken by ButterflyCircle member Loke PF at a flowering Syzygium tree last weekend.

Butterfly of the Month - April 2013

Butterfly of the Month - April 2013
The Tailed Jay (Graphium agamemnon agamemnon)

This month's Butterfly of the Month, the Tailed Jay, has the honour of bearing the name of the mythical Greek King, Agamemnon as its Latin name.  In Greek mythology, Agamemnon was the king of Troy. When Helen, the wife of Menelaus, was abducted by Paris of Troy, Agamemnon commanded the united Greek armed forces in the ensuing Trojan War, and created the famous legend of the Trojan Horse. It would be interesting to know how this attractive butterfly came to be named after a mythical Greek king.

The Boston Marathon is the oldest annual city marathon in the world, appearing for the first time in 1897. Starting with only 18 runners in 1897, the Boston Marathon ranks as one of the most prestigious running events in the world, reaching a total of 35,000 runners in 1996.  This year, 2013, the Boston Marathon was held on Patriot's Day, 15 Apr 2013.



No one was prepared for the cruel twist of fate on that day when two explosions, planted by obviously mentally disturbed men, went off near the finishing line of the run, costing three innocent lives and injuring 183 others. Several of the victims had their legs blown off by the explosion. Indeed, we live in violent times, where terrorism, whether religiously-motivated or domestic, wreaks havoc on our lives.

Nearer close to home, election fever has gripped our closest neighbours up north, where Malaysia braces itself for its 13th General Elections on 5 May 2013.  As Malaysians of all races and walks of life look forward in anticipation towards the results of the elections, social media is abuzz with talk of impending "change" in the Malaysian government. Will that happen on 5 May? Stay tuned to the results of who will be returned to power.  Being Singapore's nearest neighbour, the political climate in Malaysia will certainly have an impact on our city state, whether we like it or not.  Hence the importance of the elections results to Singapore.

Over here in Singapore, the potential dengue fever epidemic can still happen, as more and more cases have been detected.  As of yesterday, there were more cases reported and the numbers appear to be climbing. As many of us would know, dengue fever is an illness caused by infection with a virus transmitted via the bite of the Aedes mosquito. There are four types of this virus (serotypes 1 to 4) which can infect you. The Aedes mosquito is an "urban" dweller that is more often found in our residential estates than in the forests.  Whenever a dengue fever outbreak is reported, the amount of pesticides that are sprayed into the environment rises significantly.  Whilst protecting human lives is paramount, the onset of a dengue fever outbreak also spells doom for our beloved butterflies in the urban environment as these pesticide fogging can only target all insects and unfortunately destroy them without any exception.

Back to our Butterfly of the Month, the Tailed Jay. This "swallowtail" butterfly is an erratic swift flyer that is widespread in distribution across the island of Singapore. Due to its caterpillars' ability to feed on the cultivated fruits Custard Apple and Soursop, and also the roadside trees, Magnolia champaca (White Chempaka) and Polyalthia longifolia (False Ashoka Tree), the butterfly can be found in urban gardens as well as in the forested nature reserves.

The upperside of the Tailed Jay comprises emerald green spots on a black background. The hindwing has a short tail, which is longer in the female.  On the underside, the purple-brown background has the same green spotting and additional dark purple patches and red spots.

With a wingspan of up to 75mm from wingtip to wingtip, it is the largest representative of its genus in Singapore.  It is often observed in urban gardens, feeding on its favourite nectaring plants, Lantana and Ixora blooms. In the forests and nature reserves, it regularly appears at the blooms of flowering Jambu trees (Syzygium spp) where it flies at high speeds, stopping only for a fleeting moment to unfurl its proboscis to feed on nectar - all whilst its wings are flapping rapidly.

Males are also often observed to puddle in the company of other Graphiums, Papilios and many species of Pieridae.  Even when puddling, the Tailed Jay is skittish and alert, flying off quickly the moment it senses any danger approaching.  It prefers to puddling on damp sand along streambanks that have been tainted with decomposing organic matter.

Females do not puddle, but are more often encountered at flowers and also in the vicinity of its various caterpillar host plants where they are in the process of ovipositing. In some cases, the butterfly is observed to stop on the upperside of a leaf to sunbathe at certain times of the day, whilst at other times it will stop with its wings folded shut as if to take a rest from its high-energy flight activity.

The complete life history has been recorded by ButterflyCircle on this blog and found here.

Text by Khew SK : Photos by Sunny Chir, Huang CJ, Khew SK, Henry Koh, Koh CH, Loke PF, Bobby Mun, Nelson Ong, Tan BJ, Anthony Wong, Mark Wong & Benjamin Yam.

Random Gallery - Colour Sergeant

Random Butterfly Gallery
The Colour Sergeant (Athyma nefte subrata)

The genus Athyma is represented by five species in Singapore. The Colour Sergeant is the most common of the five. It is widely distributed, and can be found in the nature reserves as well as urban parks and gardens. The caterpillar host plants, at least 3 Glochidion spp., can be found cultivated in parks or growing wild in the nature reserves. The female occurs in two forms - f-neftina and f-subrata.

The male, shown here, is territorial and returns to its favourite perch to observe its surroundings and chase intruders away. It features the typical black-and-white striped patterns like all the members of the genus. The upperside of the male is black with bluish-tinged white markings. This individual, shot in the nature reserves, has a rather prominent orange apical spot on the forewings above (Inset). The typical male Colour Sergeant has white apical spots instead of orange, although the orange-spotted "form" occurs with regularity in Singapore.

Random Gallery - Yellow Flash

Random Butterfly Gallery
The Yellow Flash (Rapala domitia domitia)

The Yellow Flash often lives up to its name whenever it is encountered in the field. It is a zippy little butterfly that flashes very quickly away and is gone in the blink of an eye if it chooses to be uncooperative. As with many other species, the odds of getting a better shot of it will improve when it is distracted whilst feeding. It is the most elusive of all the Flashes (Rapala) species currently known in Singapore.

This skittish individual was shot by ButterflyCircle member Sunny Chir after it was feeding happily on the flowers of a blooming Syzygium tree in the nature reserves. The distinctive yellow undersides and jet black markings on the forewings make this the most easily identifiable Rapala amongst the many lookalikes in the genus.

Life History of the Courtesan

Life History of the Courtesan (Euripus nyctelius euploeoides )

Butterfly Biodata:
Genus: Euripus Doubleday, 1848
Species: nyctelius Doubleday, 1845
Subspecies: euploeoides C & R Felder,1867
Wingspan of Adult Butterfly: 50-70mm
Caterpillar Local Host Plants: Trema tomentosa (Ulmaceae, common name: Rough Trema, Poison Peach), Trema cannabina (Ulmaceae, common name: Lesser Trema).

A male Courtesan perching on a branch of a Trema plant.

A male Courtesan resting at a leaf perch.

A sunbathing male Courtesan giving a view of its upperside.

Physical Description of Adult Butterfly:

The eyes of both sexes are yellow but those of the female are darker with varying degrees of brown shading. The male has the termen of its hindwing indented between veins 2 and 4, and between veins 5 and 6. Above, the male is bluish black with its forewing endowed with a complex series of white spots/patches in the cell, discal and post-discal areas. The hindwing is predominantly white with blackened veins, marginal and submarginal series of small white spots. Of the two female forms (-isina, -euploeoides) present in Singapore, form -isina (a mimic of the male Magpie Crow (Euploea radmanthus)) has its wings bluish black with a large post-cellular white patch on the forewing and a broad white area in the inner basal half of the hindwing. Faint marginal series of whitish spots are present in both wings while a post-discal series of faint white spots is present in the hindwing. Form -euploeoides (a mimic of the female Magpie Crow) has its wings brown in colour. In the forewing, the post-cellular white patch is rather broad and an additional white patch is present in the cell. In the hindwing, the whitish area occupies almost two-thirds of the wing. The marginal, submarginal and post-discal series of white spots are larger and more distinct than those found in form -isina. Underneath, the wings are brown for both sexes with similar white markings as per the upperside.

A female form -isina Courtesan on a leaf perch.

The upperside view of a female form -isina Courtesan.

Another female form -isina Courtesan.

Field Observations of Butterfly Behaviour:

Courtesan is rare in Singapore. The adults have been found in various parts of nature reserves, as well as Southern Ridges and even the Singapore Botanic Gardens. They are typically found in an area where its host plants are thriving. The male has a strong flap-glide flight pattern while the female mimics the slow and unhurried flight pattern of its model.

A female form -euploeoides Courtesan taking nectar from flowers of mile-a-minute.

The upperside view of a female form -euploeoides Courtesan.

A female form -euploeoides Courtesan on a leaf perch.