We at Stratford-upon-Avon Butterfly Farm are pleased to announce the emergence
of the Green Dragontail Butterfly. The Dragontails - Lamproptera spp are a beautiful and unusual genus
of Swallowtail butterflies (family-Papilionidae) found in South Asia and
Southeast Asia. The genus is actually made up of two species, L. meges and L. curias with the
former taxon being divided up again into at least ten subspecies.
Having much smaller wing size to body length ratio, the Dragontail
butterflies display an unusual whirring flight pattern when airborne, they
rapidly beat their wings and dart back and forth in a manner similar to that of
Dragonflies using their long tails as rudders.
In general the two species are not considered rare, however they now seem
to be vulnerable in Peninsular Malaysia; apparently mainly due
to localised habitat destruction.
Dragontails are rather atypical when compared to normal Swallowtails in
that they have such a small wingspan (about 50mm) and of course transparent
wings - two features that are most unusual in Papilionidae butterflies.
(This same family also houses the worlds largest butterfly Ornithoptera
alexandrae with a massive wingspan of up to 30cm).
A specimen housed in Java seems to be the Holotype for the genus.
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