Stats

Lifespan: A few weeks
Size: Large
Diet: Herbivore
Activity: Diurnal
Social: Solitary
Biome: Tropical rainforest
Range: Australasia
Movement: Flight
Breeding: Egg-laying
Defense: Warning Colors
Status: Rare

About

The male flashes brilliant iridescent green on jet-black forewings — so striking its wings were historically used to make jewellery. Found across New Guinea, the Moluccas, and northeast Australia, it is one of the world's largest butterflies.

Life cycle

1.
egg
A tiny ribbed egg laid on the underside of a host-plant leaf, hatching within days.
2.
caterpillar
A voracious caterpillar feeds and molts through several instars, growing rapidly.
3.
chrysalis
A chrysalis hangs sealed and still while the body remodels into a winged adult.
4.
butterfly
A winged adult with full scales and coloration, ready to fly and mate.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Papilionidae
Genus: Ornithoptera
Species: Ornithoptera priamus