Mr & Mrs Wanderer

[Commander]

Dedicated to Ellen, who was wondering why I was bothered to shoot a common "Yellow Glassy Tiger".

This bunch of deep red flowers appeared to be attracting both sexes of the Wanderer (Pareronia valeria lutescens) regularly. Though they came back several times, it was still difficult to shoot them as they move very constantly as they feed, and it was a case of hit and miss in trying the nail them with their wings open.

The male of the Wanderer is a bright blue above, with black margins and veins. The female is a good mimic of the Yellow Glassy Tiger (Parantica aspasia aspasia), which obviously fools photographers as well as predators. :bsmile:

[Silverstreak]

The "Lady Wanderer" trying to shoot the female Wanderer, but refuse to shoot what appears to be a " Yellow Glassy Tiger"....not knowing it was the female Wanderer she wanted!:bsmile: :bsmile:

[butterfly_effect]

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4122/4916222734_738434e2b8.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/92639059@N00/4916222734/)
Pararenia valeria lutescens (The Wanderer) upperside (http://www.flickr.com/photos/92639059@N00/4916222734/) by garnet_mermaid (http://www.flickr.com/people/92639059@N00/), on Flickr

:(

[butterfly_effect]

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4079/4916222972_be4d6d2f70.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/92639059@N00/4916222972/)
The Wanderer on flowers (http://www.flickr.com/photos/92639059@N00/4916222972/) by garnet_mermaid (http://www.flickr.com/people/92639059@N00/), on Flickr

[atronox]

It's funny they appear to pop-out.

[Glorious Begum]

The "Lady Wanderer" trying to shoot the female Wanderer, but refuse to shoot what appears to be a " Yellow Glassy Tiger"....not knowing it was the female Wanderer she wanted!:bsmile: :bsmile:

:bsmile: :bsmile: I will give it a pass too if I see one.

[moloch]

Khew and Ellen,

Those are lovely photos. It is strange to me to see a blue pierid. I wonder if there are other blue species elsewhere in the world? The female is a good mimic of the tiger.

What is the status of these butterflies? Are they common in Singapore/Malaysia? I saw a male on my final day at Fraser's Hill. It was visiting flowers near the gate station at the the top of the hill. My gear was packed in the taxi so I did not have a chance to try and photograph the butterfly.


Regards,
David

[Commander]

Thanks, David. Yes, there are blue species. In fact, a most spectacular one is the male of Laringa castelnaui. As you have C&P4, you should be able to check it out. The blue colour appears even more spectacular in the field!

The Wanderer is still considered common in Malaysia. In fact, we saw quite a few on this outing.

But it's extinct in Singapore, and hasn't been reliably seen in the past 2 decades. :-(

[Painted Jezebel]

Hi David. There is a second species of Pareronia to be found in Malaysia, P. anais anais. This, however, is only found in the northern part of Malaysia, though it is very common in Peninsular Thailand. We also have two other species in Thailand (P. avatar and P. paravatar), though they do not reach as far south as the Peninsular.