- Morpho peleides
-
Peleides Blue Morpho 
Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Lepidoptera Family: Nymphalidae Genus: Morpho Species: M. peleides Binomial name Morpho peleides
Kollar, 1850The Peleides Blue Morpho, Common Morpho,[1] or The Emperor[2] (Morpho peleides) is an iridescent tropical butterfly found in Mexico, Central America, northern South America, Paraguay, and Trinidad.
The brilliant blue color in the butterfly's wings is caused by the diffraction of the light from millions of tiny scales on its wings. It uses this to frighten away predators, by flashing its wings rapidly. The wingspan of the Blue Morpho butterfly ranges from 7.5–20 cm (3.0–7.9 in). The entire Blue Morpho Butterfly lifecycle, from egg to adult is only 115 days.
The Blue Morpho Butterfly drinks the juices from rotting fruits for food. Its favourites in captivity are mango, kiwi, and lychee. Blue Morpho butterflies live in the rainforests of South America, and can be found in Mexico and Central America.
The larvae of Blue Morpho Butterflies are cannibals. The caterpillar Blue Morpho Butterfly is red-brown with patches of bright green.
The Blue Morpho Butterflies stick together in groups to deter their predators, a form of mobbing behavior.
Contents
Photographs
-
Morpho peleides on display at the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Science
-
-
See also
- Morpho (butterfly)
- Morpho menelaus, Menelaus Blue Morpho
References
- ^ Common Morpho
- ^ Stiling, P.D. (1986) Butterflies and onther insects of the Caribbean. New York:Macmillan Caribbean. p.52.
External links
- Peleides at funet.fi
- Morpho peleides, Blue Morpho at flickr, showing the spectacular iridescence
- Time lapse video of newly emerged imago expanding its wings
- NSG Voucher specimen.Photograph of underside.
This Morphinae article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. -
