The Blue Glassy Tiger, Ideopsis vulgaris macrina, is a common butterfly in Singapore. Individuals can often be encountered fluttering languidly amongst flowering shrubs. Like other Danaids, the Blue Glassy Tiger is distasteful to potential predators because of toxins derived from plants the caterpillars and adults feed on.
The egg of the Blue Glassy Tiger is a pale yellow and slightly elongated and is usually attached to the underside of the leaves of its host plant.
The young caterpillar is similarly coloured as caterpillars of later instars. The caterpillars are smooth with two pairs of tubercles, one at either end of its body. The caterpillar is a dark reddish purple with a dense pattern of white spots. the head of the caterpillar is a shiny black and the tubercles are a pinkish red with black tips.
The caterpillars feed voraciously (like all other caterpillars haha) and grow rapidly.
The pupa is a beautiful bright green with a few black spots, as well as three highly reflective silver spots. These spots, with their possible resemblance to leaf holes or water droplets, probably help to camouflage the pupa. The pupa is usually suspended from the underside of a leaf of the host plant.
The adult Blue Glassy Tiger is a simply patterned but beautiful butterfly. On the upperside, the wings are a dark brown streaked and dotted with a lovely pale blue. The underside is similar but paler in colour. The butterflies are very fond of Heliotropium indicum.
1 comment:
Excellent article
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