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Lesser Purple Emperor

Apatura ilia

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41.9722, -8.37871

Field Notes

Description:

Blue and black butterfly,with a dark orange stripe along the border of the wings ,when the ligth change we can see metalic blue shades.

Habitat:

Spotted in a recent burned area of huge Pseudotsuga's where just the bush and little trees burn,the majority of big trees escape without damages.

Notes:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apatura_ilia

Species ID Suggestions

Lesser Purple Emperor

Apatura ilia

Reference Link
DanielePralong
1

Comments (11)
Single D
Might have the word lesser but is certainly a beautiful specimen of this species.
Tukup
Nice catch António. As you say, they sit still for such a short time. Glad you got a nice clear picture. Thanks for sharing.
AntónioGinjaGinja
Thanks Neil,it was the first time i spott one of these,it was a very breaf encounter ,she just still for a few moments and desapear
Neil Ross
Simply gorgeous. An amazing spotting, Antonio.
DanielePralong
Hi António! This is the smaller counterpart to the Purple Emperor. Together with the size here are two more differences: the forewing upper side's orange-ringed eye-spot of ilia, not present in iris, and orange tipped antennas for ilia, not iris.

Spotted for Missions

Mission
Butterflies & Moths of the World
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Pollinating Insects of the World
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Portugal's Biodiversity
Mission
European Butterflies and Moths
Mission
2018 Best Wildlife Photo
Photographed
PublishedDecember 27, 2018

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