Doi Suthep-Pui NP, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Order : Lepidoptera
Family : Nymphalidae
Genus : Cyrestis
Species : Cyrestis thyodamas thyodamas
A medium-large size butterfly with a wingspan of 45-60mm that is found in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and southern China. Both sexes are similar in size and appearance although the female has a little more yellow on the wings. The fineness of the markings make this butterfly fairly unique. Habitat is forest edges and clearings up to an altitude of around 1000m, basically the limit of where the foodplants grow, but they have been recorded at altitudes of up to 2700m in the Himalayas. Males are often seen puddling, particularly in the vicinity of streams and are one of the few species that will lay flat on the ground with wings outstretched whilst doing so. When on the ground it rarely holds its wings upright like the butterfly above.
The larval foodplants are various Ficus (Moraceae) species including Ficus callosa, F.variegata, F.erecta, F.virgata, F.religiosa, and F.microcarpa. The larvae feed only on the leaves of these fig trees and are therefore only found where those trees grow.
All my insect pics are single, handheld shots of live insects in wild situations.
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