Byasa polyeuctes

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Common windmill
Byasa polyeuctes termessus 20140927.jpg
B. p. termessus
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Papilionidae
Genus: Byasa
Species:
B. polyeuctes
Binomial name
Byasa polyeuctes
(Doubleday, 1842) [1]
Synonyms
  • Atrophaneura polyeuctesDoubleday, 1842
  • Atrophaneura philoxenus Gray

Byasa polyeuctes, the common windmill, is the most common member in India of the windmills genus ( Byasa ), comprising tailed black swallowtail butterflies with white spots and red submarginal crescents.

Contents

Range

A common windmill spotted in Murree, Pakistan. Common windmill murree.jpg
A common windmill spotted in Murree, Pakistan.

This butterfly lives in Pakistan, northern ranges of India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, northern Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, southern China (including Yunnan) and Taiwan.

In India, the Himalayas from Himachal Pradesh to Sikkim, Assam onto Chinese South Tibet region and northern Myanmar.

Status

Overall, the butterfly is not rare. It is common in parts of Sikkim but becomes rarer westwards. It is extremely scarce in Shimla though not rare from Kangra.

In the west it ranges from the Azad Kashmir disputed territory part of the wider Kashmir region of Pakistan and India.

Description

Mounted Atrophaneura polyeuctes.JPG
Mounted
Mud-puddling of common windmill found in Jayanti river bed, Buxa Tiger Reserve, West Bengal, India. Close wing position of Byasa polyeuctes Doubleday, 1842 - Common Windmill WLB IMG 9310.jpg
Mud-puddling of common windmill found in Jayanti river bed, Buxa Tiger Reserve, West Bengal, India.

Taxonomy

Subspecies

It has four subspecies, two of which occur in India:

Habitat

This butterfly prefers forests and woods. It frequents river valleys. It occurs at low elevations (1,000 to 5,000 feet (300 to 1,520 m)) in north east India but is found at higher altitudes in the western extent of its range – up to 11,000 feet (3,400 m) in Kashmir.

Habits

This butterfly has a leisurely flight high above, but is easily recognisable by the thin long forewings and hindwings. It is attracted to flowers and visits Clemanthe , Buddleia , Lantana and Rhododendron blossoms.

It is mimicked by a day flying moth Epicopa (or Epicopia) polydorus, which flies at the same period and over the same range as the common windmill and has much the same manner and habits.

Life cycle

This species has several broods where it finds suitable climate. It is seen on the wing between April and September. The imago has a foul odour.

Food plants

See also

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. Häuser, Christoph L.; de Jong, Rienk; Lamas, Gerardo; Robbins, Robert K.; Smith, Campbell; Vane-Wright, Richard I. (28 July 2005). "Papilionidae – revised GloBIS/GART species checklist (2nd draft)". Entomological Data Information System. Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart, Germany. Archived from the original on 9 September 2010. Retrieved 21 June 2013.