CATERPILLAR AND BUTTERFLY

Papilio anactus, the dainty swallowtail, dingy swallowtail or small citrus butterfly is a medium-sized butterfly from the family Papilionidae, that is endemic to Australia. For protection against predators, this non-poisonous butterfly mimics the poisonous male Cressida cressida, another swallowtail butterfly that obtains its toxic properties through its host plant, the Dutchman's pipe.

Papilio anactus is endemic to Australia. It was originally only present in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, but due to the growing of citrus, a larval food plant of this species, in orchards, the species spread to South Australia in the late 1920s. Papilio anactus is not present on Kangaroo Island or elsewhere in Australia, as there are currently too few citrus trees. Sadly this butterfly is much less common than it once used to be. Dingy Swallowtail It also occurs on New Caledonia. There, it may be an introduced species or a vagrant.

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

SWALLOWTAIL

Papilio anactus, the dainty swallowtail, or small citrus butterfly is a medium-sized butterfly from the family Papilionidae, that is endemic to Australia. For protection against predators, this non-poisonous butterfly mimics the poisonous male Cressida cressida, another swallowtail butterfly that obtains its toxic properties through its host plant, the Dutchman's pipe.

Papilio anactus is endemic to Australia. It was originally only present in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, but due to the growing of citrus, a larval food plant of this species, in orchards, the species spread to South Australia in the late 1920s. Papilio anactus is not present on Kangaroo Island or elsewhere in Australia, as there are currently too few citrus trees. It also occurs on New Caledonia. There, it may be an introduced species or a vagrant.

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme.

VANESSA

The Australian painted lady (Vanessa kershawi) is a species of butterfly mostly confined to Australia, although westerly winds have dispersed it to islands east of Australia, including New Zealand.

Debate surrounds the taxonomy of this species. Some believe that the Australian painted lady should be a subspecies of the painted lady (Vanessa cardui) due to the similarity in lifestyle and behaviour. Furthermore, the painted lady is found around the globe, but Australia is the only location in which it varies enough to be considered a separate species. However, due to the distinct genitalia of the males, and variation in colouration, many others consider the Australian painted lady to be a separate species.

During spring, adult butterflies migrate south in large numbers from northern states of Queensland and New South Wales. To find mates, male Australian painted ladies exhibit territorial behaviour, which involves a male perching on vegetation in a sunny spot on a hilltop, waiting for females to fly by. Despite urbanization and invasive plants altering its habitat, populations of Australian painted ladies have not been significantly impacted by these changes.

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

POPPY GARDEN

Now in Winter, when flowers in the garden are sparse, I'm sharing with you an image of one of my paintings: "Poppy Garden". This particular painting is available as a quality jigsaw puzzle produced by Woodbests with all wooden pieces in a beautiful presentation box and display easel for the cover reference photo. It is available in three sizes and can be ordered here.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme

SOUTHERN DART

Ocybadistes walkeri, the greenish grass-dart, green grass-dart, southern dart or yellow-banded dart, is a type of butterfly known as a skipper found in eastern and southern Australia, with one subspecies found in the Northern Territory. The larvae feed on Dianella, Brachypodium distachyon, Cynodon dactylon, Erharta erecta, Panicum maximum, Pennisetum clandestinum and Thuarea involuta. This species was named after the distinguished English insect collector James J. Walker

The caterpillar has a dark brown head marked with a white wavy band on each side. The body is green. It usually rests by day in a shelter formed from rolled blades of its foodplant, and grows to a length of about 2 cms. To us, the caterpillar was indistinguishable from that of the related species Ocybadistes flavovittatus. Most of these caterpillars we found in Melbourne were Ocybadistes walkeri, and most of them found in Sydney were Ocybadistes flavovittatus.

The adults have dark brown wings with orange markings above. The undersurfaces of the wings have similar markings, but on a greenish yellow background, except for a dark patch along the hind margin of each forewing. The wingspan is about 2 cms. The dark grey patch on each forewing of the males, and the more convex margin of the female forewing, are the best means of distinguishing the sexes.

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

SWALLOWTAIL

Papilio anactus, the dainty swallowtail, or small citrus butterfly is a medium-sized butterfly from the family Papilionidae, that is endemic to Australia. For protection against predators, this non-poisonous butterfly mimics the poisonous male Cressida cressida, another swallowtail butterfly that obtains its toxic properties through its host plant, the Dutchman's pipe.

Papilio anactus is endemic to Australia. It was originally only present in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, but due to the growing of citrus, a larval food plant of this species, in orchards, the species spread to South Australia in the late 1920s. Papilio anactus is not present on Kangaroo Island or elsewhere in Australia, as there are currently too few citrus trees. It also occurs on New Caledonia. There, it may be an introduced species or a vagrant.

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme.

BUTTERFLY AND ROSES

An unidentified rose with the small white butterfly (Pieris rapae). This is a small- to medium-sized butterfly species of the whites-and-yellows family Pieridae. It is also known as the small cabbage white and in New Zealand, simply as white butterfly. The names "cabbage butterfly" and "cabbage white" can also refer to the large white butterfly.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme

MISHAP...

This poor little butterfly got trapped between a heavy rainshower and a full pond. Mishap with fatal consequences...

This post is part of the Wordless Wednesday meme,

and also part of the My Corner of the World meme,

and also part of the Nature Notes meme.

BUTTERFLY

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

BUTTERFLY

The small white cabbage butterfly (Pieris rapae) is a small- to medium-sized butterfly species of the whites-and-yellows family Pieridae. It is also known as the small cabbage white and in New Zealand, simply as white butterfly. The names "cabbage butterfly" and "cabbage white" can also refer to the large white.

The butterfly can be distinguished by the white colour with small black dots on its wings. It is distinguished from the large white, by its smaller size and lack of the black band at the tip of their forewings. It is widespread and populations are found across Europe, North Africa, Asia, and Great Britain. It has also been accidentally introduced to North America, Australia and New Zealand.

The caterpillar of this species is seen as a pest for commercial agriculture. Often referred to as the "imported cabbageworm" they are a serious pest to cabbage and other mustard family crops.

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme.