The Ulysses Butterfly
One of the most beautiful blue butterflies is the Ulysses Butterfly. Also known as the blue mountain butterfly, this species is a larger Australian swallowtail. They live in the Australian tropical rainforest. The Ulysses Butterfly is a tourism symbol for the northern Australian coast.
The Ulysses Butterfly is quite large with a wingspan of 5-½ inches. The top side of the wings are an incredibly bright blue with black bordering while the underneath is black and brown. The subdued colors are for the butterfly’s protection to hide them from predators. When in flight, however, the blue wings can be seen for a long distance. The female Ulysses Butterfly has small blue crescents in the black around her wings.
In the caterpillar stage of the life cycle, the coloring is green with yellowish spots. They like to feed on the Euodia tree (Melicope elleryana), which has clusters of pink flowers growing out of its branches.
The male Ulysses Butterfly is attracted to the blue color pattern on the female’s wings and will often be attracted to any object that is bright blue. The female lays her eggs on very small trees just over 2 meters high. The diet of the Ulysses Butterfly is nectar and pollen from flowers. It lands on flowers in clearings staying for only a few seconds.
The Ulysses Butterfly is protected by the Australian government even though at this time the species is not endangered. For the most part this is to protect the butterfly from collectors and poachers who sell them to collectors. The butterfly has been threatened in the past but plantings of its favorite food in suburban areas has led to increased numbers. Predators include birds and flying foxes as well as snakes and frogs.
Like other butterflies in the swallowtail family, the Ulysses Butterfly has tails on its wings. Its eyes have thousands of lenses which is why it can spot the color blue at far away distances. It breathes through holes on each side of its body.
The Australian Butterfly Sanctuary in Queensland has over 1500 species of butterflies, including the blue Ulysses. This is a good place to observe the Ulysses Butterfly because it can be elusive in the wild. The Sanctuary is a fully natural rainforest environment with
a rainforest understory and canopy as well as streams and waterfalls. Once the butterfly’s eggs have been laid, they are gathered and taken into the lab where they stay until the adult butterfly has emerged. They are then released back into the outside sanctuary. Because they are handled, these butterflies tend to be friendlier than those in a wild environment.
This is one way to preserve the Ulysses and other rare butterflies from predators and make sure they have ample supplies of the right food.