Identification
Key Characteristics:
Exhibits characteristics of the Hypolimnas genus. Males are black with distinctive, egg-shaped white patches in the center of the wings. Females are highly variable and often mimic species of the Danaidae family (Monarch butterflies).
Species-Specific Traits:
- Males: Possess a black or light brown background color, with oval white patches bordered by a blue outline in the central area of each wing.
- Females: Mimic Danaus chrysippus (Plain Tiger butterfly), but have a single black spot near the upper edge of the forewing, approximately at the seventh vein. They are smaller than H. bolina. The upper surface of females is light yellowish-brown, with two rows of white patches near the wing edges and a row of small white dots along the wing margins. However, they also have a black dot on the upper margin of the hindwing, which is not clearly defined, and this dot is absent in Danaus chrysippus. The underside is light yellowish-brown, with a black dot in the seventh cell of the hindwing.
Wingspan: 70-85 mm.
Biology and Ecology
Found in flat, secondary forests. Host plant is Abutilon sp. This species is common and lives at altitudes below 1,000m, in scrubland, grasslands, and secondary forests.
Distribution
Throughout Indo-Australian region: Sikkim, India, Myanmar, Southern China, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam.
Value, Status, and Conservation
Common in tropical forests worldwide. It is often observed in mountainous regions.