Butterflies of
Thailand, Malaysia &
Borneo
Green Dragontail
Lamproptera meges
ZINKEN-SOMMER, 1831
Family -
PAPILIONIDAE
subfamily -
PAPILIONINAE
Tribe - LEPTOCIRCINI
introduction
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habitats |
lifecycle |
adult behaviour
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Lamproptera
meges, male, Sungai Tahan, West Malaysia |
Introduction
The
Dragontails (
Lamproptera
) are among the most delightful and entertaining butterflies in the Oriental
region, being much smaller in size than other Papilionidae, and unique among
them in having completely transparent "windows" in the forewings, and very long
tails on the hindwings.
They are members of the Leptocircini, a tribe which also includes the Oriental
genera
Graphium
and
Pathysa,
the neotropical genera
Protesilaus
and
Eurytides,
and the European Scarce Swallowtail
Iphiclides podalirius.
There are only 2 species in the genus
Lamproptera, i.e. meges and
curius, both of which
are found in
Assam, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, southern China, the Philippines,
peninsular Malaysia and Borneo. The range of meges
extends further south and east, to include Sulawesi and Java.
Lamproptera meges
is the commoner of the 2 species. It is known as the Green Dragontail because
the upperside hindwing has a pale green band, and the butterfly has a distinct
greenish hue when seen in flight. The other species curius
is rarer and has a white band on the upperside hindwing. Also, unlike
meges, it has a tuft of long white androconial
scales in the dorsal fold of the upperside hindwings.
Habitats
Lamproptera meges
breeds in wet tropical and subtropical rainforests
at altitudes between about 100-1000m. It is always found in association with
rivers, streams or waterfalls.
Lifecycle
The larva feeds on
Illigera
( Hernandiaceae ), and is dark green, speckled with black spots. The pupa is
attached by the cremaster to the upper surface of a leaf.
Adult behaviour
Dragontails are
usually encountered singly or in two's and three's.
Compared to other members of the Papilionidae they have a much
smaller wing area in relation to their body size, so whereas most
Swallowtails and Birdwings have a very distinct fluttering flight,
Dragontails are able to beat their wings much faster, and can dart
from spot to spot very rapidly.
They
have a very fast whirring flight, and use their long tails as a
rudder - this allows them to stop in mid air and make very sudden
changes of direction, They can easily be
mistaken in flight for dragonflies, but tend to fly much closer to
the ground. It is quite feasible that
Lamproptera have evolved to
become mimics of the dragonflies, and thereby avoid being attacked
by them.
Males are found
almost exclusively in the vicinity of running water, most commonly
at waterfalls or fast-running mountain streams. They can often be seen
filter-feeding - sucking up water to extract dissolved minerals,
while almost continually spurting it out in a jet from the tip of
the abdomen. While feeding the butterflies vibrate their wings
rapidly, but the activity is interrupted with irregular momentary
pauses when they are held motionless.
Both sexes can
occasionally be found at rest on the foliage of bushes, with wings
fully outspread.
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