''Papilio blumei'', the peacock or green swallowtail, is a

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

of the family

Papilionidae Swallowtail butterflies are large, colorful butterflies in the family Papilionidae, and include over 550 species. Though the majority are tropical, members of the family inhabit every continent except Antarctica. The family includes the larges ...

. It is found only on the

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 ...

n island of

Sulawesi Sulawesi (), also known as Celebes (), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the world's eleventh-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Mindanao and the Sulu Ar ...

. It is sometimes confused with the more widespread '' P. palinurus'', but that species is smaller and has mostly black tails (in ''P. blumei'', the upper surface of the tails is mostly bluish green). The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan of ...

of ''P. blumei'' is . The colours on the wings of some of these butterflies are metallic and are eye catching especially when viewed from a particular angle. The remarkable feature of this butterfly's wing is that it contains rows of very small concave surfaces that reflect light in many ways. For instance, the centre of the concave surface reflects a yellow-green light and the edges reflect a blue light. At the centre of the concavity, light is reflected directly but when light hits the edges, it bounces off into forming many layers, which amplifies and rotates the waves of light. The final blend is known as

structural colour 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 wit ...

due to the complexity by which it is produced.

Technological inspiration

Researchers have taken about ten years to recreate a simplified replica of the surface of the butterfly's wing. They hope that such technology will result in bank notes and credit cards that are difficult to forgeFrom butterflies' wings to bank notes: How nature's colors could cut bank fraud
Science Daily (May 30, 2010). Retrieved on 2014-08-27. and also that it will lead to solar cells being more efficient at gathering energy from the sun. Yet it is challenging to duplicate the surface of a butterfly's wing. Professor Ullrich Steiner of

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

's Nanoscience Centre states that, "Despite the detailed scientific understanding of optics, the astonishingly varied colour palette found in nature often surpasses the optical effects that can be generated by technological means".

Subspecies

There are two recognised subspecies: *''Papilio blumei blumei'' (northern Sulawesi) *''Papilio blumei fruhstorferi'' Röber, 1897 (southern Sulawesi)

Protection

It is protected in Bantimurung – Bulusaraung National Park.

References

External links

*
Butterflycorner.net
Butterflies described in 1836 blumei Butterflies of Indonesia Taxa named by Jean Baptiste Boisduval {{papilionidae-stub

Technological inspiration

Subspecies

Protection

References

Other reading

External links