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Common lime Butterfly (Papilio demoleus): Scientific Classification, Habit and Habitat, Food Habit, Identifying Characters


Common lime Butterfly (Papilio demoleus): Scientific Classification, Habit and Habitat, Food Habit, Identifying Characters

Common lime (Papilio demoleus)

Common lime (Papilio demoleus)


Scientific Classification
Kingdom:       Animalia
Phylum:          Arthropoda
Class:             Insecta
Order:             Lepidoptera
Family:           Papilionidae
Genus:           Papilio
Species:          demoleus
Habit and Habitat:
  • Papilio demoleus is a very direct and rapid-flying species of gardens, farms and sunny open areas.
  • Males sometimes congregate at puddles and riverbanks in search of salts. This species avoids dense, damp forest, and excessively wet areas.
Food Habit: The adult Common lime is a Nectarivore and feeds on the nectar from many species of flowers, such as Ixora spp., Lantana spp., Vernonia spp. and Clerodendrum spp. Zinnia spp. The food-plant for larvae varies, Aegle marmelos (bael), Ziziphus spp., lime, orange, and Pomelo are the chief.

Identifying Characters:

Adult Male
Upperside black. Fore wing: base below cell and basal half of latter so irrorated with yellow scales as to form more or less complete transverse dotted lines, two outwardly oblique yellow spots in cell and a curved spot at its upper apex; a spot at the base and another beyond it in interspace 8; a discal transverse series of cream-yellow spots irregular in arrangement and size extends from interspace 1 a to 8 ; the series interrupted in interspace 5 and the spot in interspace 7 double; this is followed by a sinuous postdiscal series of spots and an admarginal terminal series of smaller spots. In many specimens between the discal and postdiscal series the black ground-colour is irrorated with yellowish scales.

Hind wing: base and an edging that decreases in width along the dorsal margin irrorated with yellow scales ; followed by a broad medial yellow irregular band, a sinuous postdiscal series of outwardly emarginate yellow spots and a terminal series of smaller similarly coloured spots as on the fore wing. The inner margin of the medial band is curved inwards, the outer margin is very irregular and uneven ; in the cell the band does not reach the apex, but beyond the cell there are one or more cream-yellow spots, and the black ground-colour is irrorated with yellowish scales

 Finally at the tornal angle there is an oval ochraceous-red spot emarginate on its inner side in the ♀and in both sexes surmounted by a blue lunule ; while in interspace 7 between the medial band and the postdiscal spot there is a large ocellus-like spot of the black ground-colour more or less irrorated with blue scales.

Adult Female
Underside: ground-color similar, the cream-colored markings paler and conspicuously larger. The 'atter differ from those on the upperside as follows: Fore wing: basal half of cell and base of wing below it with cream-colored streaks that coalesce at base; irregular ochraceous spots in interspaces, 5 to 8 and the discal series of spots complete not interrupted in interspace 5.

 Hind wing: the black at the base of the wing and along the dorsal margin centered largely with pale cream-color; the ocellus in interspace 7, the apex of the cell, and the black ground-color between the medial band and postdiscal markings in interspaces 2-6 centered with ochraceous, margined with blue. Antennae dark reddish-brown, touched with ochraceous on the inner side towards the club; head, thorax and abdomen dusky black, the head and thorax anteriorly streaked with cream-yellow ; beneath the palpi, thorax, and abdomen cream-yellow with lateral longitudinal black lines on the last.
The butterfly is tailless and has a wingspan 80–100 mm

Larva
After 1st moult tuberculate, brown with a milk-white V-shaped mark on the 6th-9th segments, and white lateral streaks anterior and posterior to the V-shaped markings. These make the larva look for all the world like the droppings of some bird, and it is evidently to some extent protected thereby, for while young, the larva feeds and rests openly on the upper side of the leaf. Full-grown the larva is a brilliant rich green, velvety, and without tubercles, the sides and some of the segments dorsally marked with black, yellowish-white, and rich brown; head, legs, and prologs reddish brown.

 Pupa
The pupa, which is rugose (wrinkled), stout, and 30 mm in the length has two projections to the front on its head and also one on its thorax, and resembles that of the common Mormon (Papilio polytes), the difference being that the common Mormon pupa has a deeper cut between the projections and its abdomen is more protruded on the sides, having a small points.  pupa is dimorphic with regards to color, with the color developing according to the prevalent color and texture in the background. The green morph, which is found amongst green vegetation and smoother textures, is light green and unmarked or with yellow dorsal markings. When situated among brown or dry objects, the pupa tend to turn light grey brown to pink brown and develop cryptic dark brown and black striation.

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