''Papilio ulysses'', the Ulysses butterfly (also commonly known as the Blue emperor), is a large swallowtail butterfly of Australia,

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

and the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capit ...

. Its size varies depending on subspecies, but the wingspan is about in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

. This butterfly is used as an emblem for tourism in Queensland, Australia.

Description

Papilio ulysses ambiguus Rothschild, 1895

The Ulysses butterfly typically has a wingspan of about , but depending on subspecies has some variations in size (western subspecies largest). The upperside of the wings are an iridescent electric blue; the underside is a more subdued black and brown. The colours are produced by the microscopic structure of the scales, a phenomenon called

structural colouration Structural coloration in animals, and a few plants, is the production of colour by microscopically structured surfaces fine enough to interfere with visible light instead of pigments, although some structural coloration occurs in combination w ...

.P. Vukusic, J. R. Sambles, C. R. Lawrence, R. J. Wootton (2001) Sculpted-multilayer optical effects in two species of Papilio butterfly. Applied Optics 40:1116-1125 The female of the species is different from the male in that she has little crescents of blue in the back, upside sections of her hindwings, where there is only black for males. When the butterfly is perched the intense blue of its wings is hidden by the plainer brown under side of its wings, helping it to blend in with its surroundings. When in flight, the butterfly can be seen hundreds of metres away as sudden bright blue flashes. Males are strongly attracted to the colour blue, including blue objects which are sometimes mistaken for females.

Similar species

The other members of the ''Papilio ulysses''

species group In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

. *'' Papilio montrouzieri'' Boisduval, 1859 *'' Papilio syfanius'' Oberthür, 1886

Subspecies

*''P. u. ulysses'' Seran, Ambon *''P. u. telemachus'' Montrouzier, 1856 Trobriand, Fergusson, Goodenough *''P. u. telegonus'' C. & R. Felder, 1860 Bachan, Ternate, Halmahera *''P. u. autolycus'' C. & R. Felder, 1865 West Irian - Papua *''P. u. joesa'' Butler, 1869 Cape York - McKay, Queensland *''P. u. orsippus'' Godman & Salvin, 1888 Choiseul, Isabel, Guadalcana, Florida Island *''P. u. ambiguus'' Rothschild, 1895 Bismarck Archipelago *''P. u. melanotica'' Hagen, 1897 Moluccas *''P. u. gabrielis'' Rothschild, 1898 Admiralty Is. *''P. u. nigerrimus'' Ribbe, 1898 Bougainville, Shortland Is. *''P. u. morotaicus'' Rothschild, 1908 Morotai Island *''P. u. dohertius'' Rothschild, 1898 Obi *''P. u. ampelius'' Rothschild, 1908 Buru *''P. u. oxyartes'' Fruhstorfer, 1909 Aru *''P. u. georgius'' Rothschild, 1908 New Georgia Group

Diet and conservation

Conservation

The Ulysses butterfly inhabits

tropical rainforest Tropical rainforests are rainforests that occur in areas of tropical rainforest climate in which there is no dry season – all months have an average precipitation of at least 60 mm – and may also be referred to as ''lowland equa ...

areas and suburban gardens. The Australian government requires breeders to obtain permits, although the species is not endangered. In the past, this butterfly had been threatened but planting pink flowered doughwood has increased its numbers. Reduction in the number of the '' Euodia'' trees, a tree heavily used for laying eggs and for leaves eaten by caterpillars, may threaten the survival of this butterfly. Females favour small trees up to 2 metres tall to lay their eggs.

Diet

The larval food plants of this butterfly include kerosene wood, a variety of ''

Citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to ...

'', and '' Euodia''. In Australia, the Ulysses butterfly imago is known to feed from the blossoms of the pink flowered doughwood, a tree with clusters of small pink flowers that extrude from its branches.

References

External links

ButterflyCorner.net
{{Taxonbar, from=Q135582 ulysses Butterflies described in 1758 Butterflies of Asia Butterflies of Australia Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus