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Urania Swallowtail Moth

Urania fulgens

Photo by Dan Doucette
Published on Project Noah
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6.46815, -74.5642

Field Notes

Description:

very similar to U. leilus, but is rarer and lacks the outermost green bands on the forewing

Habitat:

tropical rainforest

Notes:

There was a lot of these butterflies feeding on the flowers of a mango tree in the campground of Rio Claro reserve. It was amazing to see so many of these large beauties. I took a lot of shots of them in the tree but thankfully I found one later, much closer to ground level, to get some really close up shots.

Species ID Suggestions

Urania Swallowtail Moth

Urania fulgens

Reference Link
bayucca
2

Comments (8)
Dan Doucette
I'm on a roll! Another right guess, thanks for confirming bayucca.
bayucca
It is actually Fulgens. Note the missing slim green stripes on the forewing and the "missing" much smaller whitish/bright greenish patches on the hindwing, which are typical for Urania leilus. Fulgens: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Urania_fulgens_MHNT_dos.jpg Leilus: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Urania_leilus_MHNT_dos.jpg
Dan Doucette
Thanks for the suggestion EnvUnlimited and that's what I thought too, but if you look, this is missing the prominent white on the tails. It still may be U leilus, but I'm not sure. bayucca? http://www.learnaboutbutterflies.com/Amazon%20-%20Urania%20leilus.htm

Spotted for Missions

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Colombia Wildlife
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Moths of the World
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2013 Best Wildlife Photo
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Mission WILD
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National Geographic's Great Nature Project

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Photographed
PublishedSeptember 29, 2013

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