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Happy Friday, Butterfly Buddies!!! We hope you’re having a great Friday. This week we’re going to tell you about a spectacular group of butterflies from Southeast Asia, the “Gloss Swallowtails”. They are Swallowtail butterflies in the true sense of the word, with all of them having classic “tails” on the hind wings. They belong to the subgenus Achillides. All of the butterflies in the Achillides group have iridescent markings that make them a favorite among collectors. We’re going to keep today’s post rather short, because once you see the pictures, we won’t need to say much more!
The “Gloss Swallowtails” are medium to large in size with today’s three examples being all in the 4 to 4 ½ inch range. The three species shown today are Papilio karna, Papilio blumei, and Papilio arcturus. Karna and Arcturus have a number of similar looking relatives, but Blumei is unique looking with its bright blue tails. One of the most common characteristics is the background wing color. It looks dark green, but with close examination you can see that the green is “clumpy” in nature. It looks like an impressionist “dot” painting. The Achillides group includes about 25 species, but many of them have lots of subspecies. Serious collectors try to obtain all of the subspecies with all the variations. But even one of these beauties can be the highlight of any collection. Another extremely popular Achillides Swallowtail is Papilio Ulysses which we featured in Friday Flyers 18. Of the three species featured today, each has its own unique distinction. Papilio karna usually has the largest iridescent patch. Papilio blumei is the only one of the group that has the blue tails. And Papilio arcturus is almost unrivaled for having so many different colors on a single hind wing!
As we said above, these three butterflies are always favorites among collectors because of their beauty. But they are also some of the most reasonably priced of the larger Swallowtail butterflies. That’s because they are bred by butterfly farmers for collectors and for live butterfly exhibits. We have these and several other Achillides Swallowtails in our Wonders Of Nature department, all beautifully framed and matted, and all priced between $75 and $100. And we have these remarkable butterflies featured in our most popular butterfly wing pendants, starting under $50!!! If you’ve been wanting to add to your framed butterfly collection, or if you want a unique piece of jewelry that’s perfect for the summer months, now might be the perfect time to stop in and see us. There are lots of new additions in our Wonders Of Nature department. See you on the trail!
And don’t forget to visit the Friday Flyers archive on our website. You can now refer to all of the past editions complete with all the photos, in a stable and permanent format. We hope you’ll visit our website and check it out at:
https://dandmperlman.com/inside/gifts/fridayflyers.htm
We hope you enjoyed this week’s edition of Friday Flyers. We love sharing our interest in butterflies and insects with you. Please enjoy the photos we have posted with this week’s edition, and be sure to see all the previous pictures in our Friday Flyers album. Remember to “like” our Wonders Of Nature page, and be sure to pass it along to all your Facebook Friends. We hope you’ll visit our Wonders Of Nature department soon, and we look forward to seeing you.
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