Dark Blue Tiger
The Blue tiger is a delight to the eye. They have a wingspan of 75 to 105 mm. The head, antennae and thorax is brownish black in colour, with white dots on the head and neck. The Blue Tiger Butterflies have brownish black upper parts, with bluish white semi hyaline spots and streaks. They have two pairs of filaments.
Did you know?
The toxic compound from the Blue Tiger can cause heart attacks when ingested in large doses!
- Common Name: Dark Blue Tiger
- Scientific Name: Tirumala septentrionis
- Family: Nymphalidae
- Subfamily: Danainae
- Tribe: Danaini
- Wingspan: 2.8 to 3.5 in
- Place of origin: South & Southeast Asia
Tirumala hamata, the dark tiger, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is distributed from the Philippines to Australia and Pacific oceanic islands such as Samoa. In Australia, the butterflies perform mass migrations to the south in some years. In April 1995, the butterfly made a rare migratory journey to New Zealand, coinciding with the appearance of Hypolimnas bolina on the islands.
The wingspan is about 70 mm. Adults have black wings with blue spots. They are grey with black bands between segments and orange lateral lines and a black head with white markings. Adults have been observed scratching the leaves of Heliotropium amplexicaule and Parsonsia straminea, possibly to suck out moisture,or to obtain pyrrolizidine alkaloids for pheromone production and/or chemical defense.
The Dark Blue Tiger Butterfly is native to South and Southeast Asia. Both the Blue Tiger and the Dark Blue Tiger are common over their overlapping ranges.
The Dark Blue Tiger (above left) is not only noticeably darker (more brown) than the Blue Tiger (above centre) but certain key features of its pattern differ (ringed). Both are males with a “pocket.” The butterfly above far right is a female (no pocket flap, more blue) and appears to have features halfway between the two — so probably a Scarce Blue Tiger from India.
The Dark Blue Tiger (Tirumala septentrionis) is a Danaid butterfly found in South and Southeast Asia.
Dark Blue Tiger is a large tropical butterfly with migrant tendencies. A slow leisure flier with a wingspan of 8-10 cm and considered an inedible species by predators because of its toxicity and unpleasant taste.
It bears striking color combinations. The upperside of wings are black with pale blue markings of varying sizes and shapes, giving it a lovely spotty look. Narrow blue streaks radiate from the basal part of wings and markings broaden and lighten towards the outer margins. The hind wings has a characteristic wishbone marking in the cell, formed by 2 streaks joined at the base.
