Our butterfly of the month for April 2012 is the relatively common Eurema species, the Chocolate Grass Yellow.   The species is distinctive in having a solid dark brown patch at the apical area of the underside of the forewing.  The species is seasonally common, and up to over two dozen individuals have been observed puddling at one time.  Male Chocolate Grass Yellows are regularly observed to puddle at damp sandy and muddy spots in the nature reserves.

The species is widespread in Singapore and occurs in the nature reserves as well as in urban parks and gardens.  The butterfly often flies with other Grass Yellow species in Singapore.  The upperside features a black marginal border on both the fore and hindwings.  Females are rarer and the marginal border thicker but more diffuse.

Read all about it at the Butterflies of Singapore BLOG.

The Striped Blue Crow is a relatively common Danainae that is quite widespread in Singapore.  It can usually be found singly in the nature reserves as well as at urban parks and gardens.   Whenever there are flowering trees like the Syzygium sp., this species can often be spotted amongst other species of the Danainae subfamily, feeding on the flowers.  Males of the Striped Blue Crow are also observed to puddle at damp sandy spots along streams where the sand has been contaminated with decomposing organic matter.

The Striped Blue Crow’s colourful caterpillar feeds on a variety of host plants, many of which are lactiferous.  The caterpillar is able to sequester the poisonous alkaloids in its body as it feeds, rendering the adult butterfly protection by being distasteful to predators.  The adult butterflies display aposematic warning colouration.  The males are a shiny iridescent blue on the upperside of the forewings, whilst the female has less blue on the forewings, but sports the striped pattern of the other distasteful Danainae species like the Blue and Dark Glassy Tigers. 

Read all about it at the Butterflies of Singapore BLOG. 

Our Butterfly of the Month for March 2012 is the seasonal migrant, the Chocolate Albatross (Appias lyncida vasava).  Corresponding with the start of the butterfly season where numbers of butterflies in Malaysia and Singapore typically increase seasonally, the Chocolate Albatross tends to be common, and sometimes even abundant, in Malaysia.  It is during this period in the past years that this species is often sighted in Singapore.  Although it is not a resident species, the Chocolate Albatross appears time and again over the past years around this time of the year.  It can be classified as a seasonal migrant in Singapore.  Both males and females have been sighted in Singapore.

The male of the Chocolate Albatross is predominantly white above, with a black dentate margin on both wings.  The underside of the hindwing is a rich lemony yellow with a dark chocolate border on the fore and hindwings.  Males are often seen congregated and puddling at damp sandy banks of rivers and streams together with other species of butterflies.  The female is much rarer, and usually encountered at flowers. 

Read all about it at the Butterflies of Singapore BLOG.

The Common Lascar is one of four lookalike Lascars that occur in Singapore.  Basically black-and-orange banded, these butterflies look very similar when in flight, and belong to two genera – Lasippa and Pantoporia.  The Common Lascar is moderately common, and usually found in the forested areas where they have been observed puddling as well as feeding on flowering plants.  The species is quite easy to identify by its single orange submarginal line on the forewing above that has a thinner grey fascia lying on the inner side.  On the underside, the marbled underside sets it apart easily from the other lookalikes as it is the only species that has that strongly marbled appearance. 

The caterpillar of the Common Lascar feeds on two known host plants in Singapore, one of which is the Petai (of which the seeds are a delicacy in Malay cuisine).  The caterpillar has a unique behaviour of cutting the fresh leaves of the host plant and letting them wither before feeding on the semi-dried leaves.  The feeding caterpillar conceals itself amongst the withered part of the plant and escapes detection by hiding amongst the dried leaflets.

Read all about it at the Butterflies of Singapore BLOG.

Singapore, comprising 63 islands and islets covering a land area of 712.4 sq km, is a developed country with over 5.2 million people.  Considered a very densely populated country, one would be amazed with its rich biodiversity of flora and fauna on this island city-state at the southernmost tip of the Malay Peninsula.  With over 300 butterfly species to date and counting, this blog article features the three extant species of butterflies bearing the word “singapura” or “singhapura” in its Latin name.

The three species that are still thriving on the Little Red Dot are – The Blue Spotted Crow (Euploea midamus singapura), the Singapore FourLine Blue (Nacaduba pavana singapura) and the Shining Plushblue (Flos fulgida singhapura). 

Read all about it at the Butterflies of Singapore BLOG.

The Common Red Flash is an attractive hairstreak, in particular the male, where the crimson-red uppersides are a sight to behold when they sunbathe in the late afternoon hours of the day.  ButterflyCircle unofficially considers this species as Singapore’s national butterfly as it metaphorically represents the “Little Red Dot” which Singapore is often referred to.  The Common Red Flash is a fast-flying butterfly and males have often been encountered dog-fighting amongst open grassy fields on a hot day. 

In Singapore, they have been successfully bred on two locally common host plants as shown in Horace Tan’s meticulously documented article in the blog.  The species is by no means abundant or common, but can be found in certain localities along the forest edges of the nature reserves where the host plants thrive.  However, as both host plants are seen as secondary forest “weeds” any clearing of these plants for development or a more manicured landscaping would threaten the existence of this butterfly.

And with this little butterfly of auspicious red, ButterflyCircle wishes all its Chinese members a Happy, Prosperous and Healthy Year of the Dragon!  Gong Xi Fa Cai! 

Read all about it at the Butterflies of Singapore BLOG.

Our final Butterfly of the Month for 2011, the Scarce Silverstreak (Iraota rochana boswelliana).  This pretty Lycaenid is a zippy flyer and flies at high speeds when alarmed.  However, it is moderately common in Singapore, as its caterpillar host plant, Ficus microcarpa, has been cultivated as roadside hedges and a common landscaping ‘filler’ plant used typically as boundary bushes.  Males are spectacular, with its upperside a shining  greenish-blue, with broad black borders.  Females are a drab bronzey brown and unmarked.

The undersides of the Scarce Silverstreak feature cryptic patterns of brown and silvery-white streaks.  The large tornal lobe features a black eyespot.  There are three pairs of tails at the hindwings, with each thick black tail ending in white tip.  The butterfly, particularly the female is often seen at the bushes of its host plant during the late morning and early afternoon hours of the day.

Read all about it at the Butterflies of Singapore BLOG.

The Orange Awlet is a rather widespread Hesperiidae, having been observed in various locations within Singapore’s nature reserves as well as in urban parks in the Southern Ridges.  The adults are fast-flyers and are usually active in the early morning hours and late in the evenings.  The males are coppery brown above, whilst females are a steely blue.  Undersides are dark orangy brown with pale orange streaks.  The adults are most often seen feeding on flowers, although occasionally, they are observed puddling at damp forest paths or feeding on bird droppings.  In the hot midday hours, they are usually shy, and have a habit of zipping around and hiding on the undersides of leaves unless disturbed.

The caterpillars feed on the host plant Arthrophyllum diversifolium (Araliaceae) a relatively common plant that is found in primary and secondary forested areas.  The plant can grow up to tree heights of over two storeys high.  The caterpillars of the Orange Awlet creates leaf shelters as it feeds, often defoliating significant parts of the young plant of the host. 

Read all about it at the Butterflies of Singapore BLOG.

The Lime Butterfly (Papilio demoleus malayanus) is a common urban butterfly that can be found in parks, gardens and even in high rise apartments in Singapore!  The species feeds on a number of Rutaceae, of which the common lime plant (Citrus spp) which are cultivated in many gardens is the favourite host plant.  The lime plant is often cultivated in pots and can be found even in Housing and Development Board high rise apartments.  The fruits and leaves of the plants are often used as an ingredient in local cooking.  Where pesticides are not used, the female Lime Butterfly has this uncanny ability to locate the host plants onto which to oviposit her eggs.  Hence it is not unusual to find caterpillars on pots of lime plants even on the 10th storey apartments

The adult butterfly is a fast-flyer and has an erratic and busy flight.  It is active, but can be observed when it stops to feed on the nectar of flowering plants.  At times, an individual can be observed to sunbathe with its wings opened wide.  Males of the species are known to puddle at sandy stream banks like many of the Papilionidae.

Read all about it at the Butterflies of Singapore BLOG.

The Butterfly Lodge at Oh’ Farms was originally set up in Aug 2008.  It was an experiment to set up an educational and butterfly conservation facility to help in the study and research of butterflies.  Three years down the road, the Butterfly Lodge has been very successful and popular with school children and nature enthusiasts alike.  The owner, Ore Yeok Keong, decided to expand the facility and to enlarge the space within the butterfly aviary so that more plants, more species and more space can be created.

The blog article explores the new Butterfly Lodge V 2.0 whereby the footprint of the original facility has been more than doubled, and the height of the enclosure has been raised.  There are also more plants – both host and nectaring, in the enclosure, and additional species are now featured as well.  Worth a visit if you enjoy the beautiful butterflies fluttering around you, and you are amongst Mother Nature’s Flying Jewels!

Read all about it at the Butterflies of Singapore BLOG.