Latin Etymology: Danaus (a mythical Egyptian King) chrysippus (after a Greek Philosopher)
Adult Plain Tiger (subspecies D. c. chrysippus) at Bishan Park, Singapore - February 2019
Featured Subspecies: Danaus chrysippus chrysippus
Weight: ? / Length: 2.3cm (body) / Wingspan: 7-8cm
NO UK STATUS / IUCN Red List: Not Yet Evaluated
A large, distinctive butterfly with a huge range spanning Africa, Asia and Australia. Their bright colours are to warn predators; they consume milkweed as larvae which renders them unpalatteable to many predators. As a further extension of this process, it has a number of species which have begun to mimic it to benefit from it's toxicity. It also has the distinction of being on the earliest butterflies known to be depicted in human art, appearing in a fresco at Luxor.
Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Nymphalidae
Genus: Danaus
SUBSPECIES: D. c. chrysippus, D. c. acippus, D. c. orientis
- Sighting Locations -
Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto
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