White Dragontail Butterfly

White Dragontail Butterfly Facts, "Scientific name for White Dragontail Butterfly is Lamproptera curius". The White Dragontail is a small, white and black swallowtail butterfly that is native to parts of south Asia and Southeast Asia. It has long white-tipped tail and its name is probably derived from the fact that it resembles a dragonfly when in flight. The White Dragontail Butterfly is this characteristic pattern of flying that distinguishes it from other butterflies, together with its tailed hind wings and transparent wing parts. Lamproptera curius is the smallest swallowtail species to be found in the southeastern parts of Asia.

The swallowtail species are made up of a group of butterflies having tails that look like the forked tails of certain swallows. Swallowtails are distributed across the world and are also common in many countries in the southeastern parts of Asia. Usually, the White Dragontail Butterfly can be quite big, with the wingspan of a common Mormon, for instance, being about (10 centimeters). Most of these swallowtails have wings that are mainly black with speckles. Despite the swallowtails being distributed across the whole world, the White Dragontail butterfly is native only to Southeast Asia.

The White Dragontail is one of the smallest swallowtails with a wingspan of just about (2 inches) 5 centimeters It is usually found paddling on sandy shores of riverbanks or places with running water. Unlike most paddling butterflies, the White Dragontail Butterfly prefers to paddle away from other butterflies. When flying, the White Dragontail Butterfly doesn’t look like a butterfly, and it is easy to mistake it for a dragonfly or some other insect.

A White Dragontail Butterfly has a black upper side and the outer half of its fore-wing forms a black bordered, colorless transparent triangular area. A White Dragontail Butterfly is possible to distinguish this species from the others by the white bands on its fore and hind wings. Also, there are adraconial scales in the male’s anal pouch found on the upper side of the hind wing.
A White Dragontail Butterfly can see yellow, green, and red. An adult White Dragontail Butterfly average life span is from a week to a year
The top flight speed of a White Dragontail Butterfly is 12 miles per hour and some moths can fly up to 25 miles per hour.
A Butterfly is cold-blooded, which means the body temperature is not regulated on its own. A White Dragontail Butterfly can't fly or eat if their body temperature is below 82 degrees fah (28 cel). White Dragontail Butterfly's are often basking in the sun with their wings open to gain heat. Than the veins in the wings carry the heat to the body.
A White Dragontail Butterfly has sense organ, on their feet or tarsi, for tasting

The life-cycle of White Dragontail Butterfly takes roughly six weeks. During the early stages of development, the larva is generally black and smooth, with a black head and the sides above the prologs being yellow-ochre. The larva also has a narrow yellow-ochre border around the anal segment. In later cycles of life, the larva develops an apple green color and is darker on the back. There is a buff line going from head to tail just above the legs, as well as three yellow stripes between the seventh and the tenth segment. The head of the White Dragontail Butterfly adopts a green color with the crown having four round black spots, and two smaller spots at the jaw’s angle.

History of the White Dragontail Butterfly is not well-known. However, its presence in the south and southeastern parts of Asia can be linked to a scientific research in late 1960s in the region. In 1967, a scientist named Dr. Carrey Hughes and his wife visited the National History of Museum’s department of entomology to enquirer if there were any butterflies in Hong Kong that required an investigation into their life histories. They were referred to Lamproptera curius, and they were able to breed it and write notes on its life-cycle. Today, the White Dragontail Butterfly is common in the region with Hong Kong being their most common place.

Life cycle of a White Dragontail Butterfly comes in four stages, egg, larva "caterpillars", pupa "chrysalis" and adult Butterfly.
A White Dragontail Butterfly will attach its eggs to leaves with a special glue.

When caterpillars become fully grown they will attach to an appropriate leaf or small branch, than they will shed the outside layer of their skin and a hard skin underneath known as a "chrysalis" will be their new look
An adult White Dragontail Butterfly will come out from the "chrysalis" than it waits a few hours for its wings to dry and fill with blood, before the White Dragontail Butterfly takes its first flight.

The estimate is between 15000 and 20000 different species of butterfly.

A White Dragontail Butterfly has a small body, made up of three parts – the head, abdomen and thorax. A White Dragontail Butterfly has two large eyes, which are made up of many small parts which are called "compound eyes".
A White Dragontail Butterfly has two antenna's on the top of their heads, which they use to smell, hear and feel. A White Dragontail Butterfly’s mouth is a long tube a "proboscis" - a long narrow tube in their mouth that looks like a straw when its done eating, it rolls the tube back up.

A White Dragontail Butterfly has three pairs of legs and their feet have little claws that help them stand on flowers. The White Dragontail Butterfly's wings are made up of hard tubes that are covered with a thin tissue. The White Dragontail Butterfly's wings are covered with fine dusty like scales. A White Dragontail Butterfly has four brightly colored wings having distinctive patterns made up of tiny scales. The bright patterns scales sometimes have hidden ultraviolet patterns for attracting mates. The bright colors are also used as camouflage to hide them or scare off predictors.
A White Dragontail Butterfly are insects. A White Dragontail Butterfly is a herbivore; Meaning that as a caterpillar its first food is its own eggshell and than it will eat the leaves of the plant on which it is hatched. When the White Dragontail becomes a butterfly, it will feed mostly on nectar from flowers, rotting fruit and water with a "proboscis" - a long narrow tube in their mouth that looks like a straw.