‘Iridescent’ butterflies seen doing ‘aerial contests’ are a new species. Check them out
As sunlight was shining on a park in Australia, several “iridescent” butterflies flew around. A scientist watched as the colorful insects did “aerial contests” and “established mating territories.”
The butterflies turned out to be a new species.
Susan Wishart visited a national park in the Australian Capital Territory in August 2021 and took several photos of purple butterflies. She submitted the photos to an online wildlife map where they caught the attention of Michael Braby, according to a study published May 29 in the peer-reviewed journal Austral Entomology.
The coloring and wing patterns of the purple butterflies in the photos didn’t quite match any of the park’s known species, Braby wrote in the study.
Intrigued, Braby visited the park himself and found dozens more similar-looking butterflies. Taking a closer look at the animals, he realized this was a new species: Paralucia crosbyi, or the violet copper butterfly.
Violet copper butterflies have hairy bodies and measure roughly an inch across, the study said. When closed, their wings are brownish-gray but, when open, are a “brilliant bluish purple.” Photos show this “iridescent” coloring.
Violet copper butterflies fly “only during sunshine” and regularly bask in the sunlight, Braby said. When basking, their wings “refracted extraordinary colours of bronze and iridescent green.”
The new species lives in a mountainous woodland habitat, the study said. During the breeding season, butterflies “engaged in aerial contests and established mating territories.” A pair was seen “mating at midday.”
Females lay “lime-green” eggs at the base of specific plants, Braby said. A photo shows one of these almost sea urchin-like eggs. Larvae hatch from the eggs, eat and grow, then turn into pupae.
The new species spends most of the year — roughly nine months — as pupae before emerging as adults, the study said. Adults can be found for only about 11 weeks of the year, starting in late July and ending in early October.
Braby said he named the new species “crosbyi” after scientist David Crosby because of “his life-time contribution to the study of Victorian butterflies.” The new species’ common name refers to its “brilliant” coloring.
Violet copper butterflies likely went unnoticed because of their mountain habitats and limited flying periods, Braby said. So far, the new species has only been found at a national park in the Australian Capital Territory, a region around Canberra in southern Australia, and nearby areas.
The new species was identified by its coloring, wing patterns, body shape, appearance at different life stages and DNA, the study said.
This story was originally published June 6, 2024 at 11:19 AM with the headline "‘Iridescent’ butterflies seen doing ‘aerial contests’ are a new species. Check them out."
