Stats

Lifespan

A few weeks

Size

Large

Diet

Herbivore

Activity

Diurnal

Social

Solitary

Biome

Tropical rainforest

Range

Southeast Asia

Movement

Flight

Breeding

Egg-laying

Defense

Toxins

Status

Uncommon

About

This butterfly lives in the forests of Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. It stores toxic plant chemicals in its body to make itself taste bitter to predators.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   egg

   A tiny ribbed egg laid on the underside of a host-plant leaf, hatching within days.
2. 2.
   caterpillar

   A voracious caterpillar feeds and molts through several instars, growing rapidly.
3. 3.
   chrysalis

   A chrysalis hangs sealed and still while the body remodels into a winged adult.
4. 4.
   butterfly

   A winged adult with full scales and coloration, ready to fly and mate.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Lepidoptera

Family

Nymphalidae

Genus

Tirumala

Species

Tirumala septentrionis