Sunday, September 5, 2010

Southern Birdwing Butterfly (Troides minos)


Southern Birdwing Butterfly (Troides minos)
Garuda Salabham (in Malayalam)

According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the biggest butterfly in the world is Queen Alaxandra’s Birdwing Butterfly
The Southern Birdwing (Troides minos) is a large and striking Swallowtail butterfly found in southern India. The wingspan being larger than those of small birds, hence the name: "birdwing".
It was earlier considered a subspecies of the Common Birdwing (Troides helena) but is now recognised as a valid species.
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Habitat :Southern India. Bombay to Travancore
               Found up to 3000 feet in the Western Ghats


My Observations
  
19-5-2003 –9.00 AM- The pupa collected from Edana(in Malayalam) plant and kept in the room is seen hatched –It is Southern Birdwing Butterfly

 
Caterpillar: Fatty body, black or dark brown in colour, having spine-like thing throughout the body which is having orange colour at the edge. In this one spine is white in colour and orange at the edge. One white line across the body in the middle.


04-06-2003- One pupa is collected from a Lea Plant . There is lot of Thottea plant around this area. May be the caterpillar mounted over lea only for pupating

HOST PLANT

Aristolochia indica  -Indian birthworth 
Garudakodi (in Malayalam)


Kingdom : Plantae
Order       : Piperales
Family      : Aristolochiaceae
Genus      : Aristolochia

Aristolochia means “excellent birth” and refers to the traditional use of the fresh juice to induce labour. Root was used mainly in childbirth. In England, it was known as birthwort and used for this purpose.
Aristolochia tagala - Indian birthwort 
Valiya arayan (in Malayalam)


Kingdom – Plantae

Order       -  Piperales
Family     - Aristolochiaceae
Genus      - Aristolochia
In India, the roots are considered a tonic, carminative and emmenagogue
Thottea siliquosa (Lam.) Ding Hou   
Alpam ( in Malayalam)

Family      : Aristolochiaceae 

subfamily : Aristolochioideae

Genus      : Thottea

Acknowledgement: Dr. K.K.Sabu and Dr.E.S.Santhoshkumar of TBGRI, Thiruvananthapuram





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