Notes

I saw quite a lot of these butterflies in the Blue Mountains in late March 2005. I’ve found them to be difficult to approach as they are very wary, however, they are much easier to photograph when in overcast conditions.

When the sun is shining the butterflies are very active, but when the sun goes in they tend to land and pose with their wings open, unless it gets too gloomy in which case they close their wings. So the best way to get photos of this species is to look for them on a partly cloudy day. You spot them when they’re flying in the sunshine, and photograph them when they settle in a cloudy period.

Sightings

Lawson, Blue Mountains – March 2005, March 2019, March 2021
Wentworth Falls, Blue Mountains – March 2005; March 2006
Blackheath – March 2006
Barrington Tops national Park – January 2010

Links

• The Complete Field Guide to Australian Butterflies (2nd edition) by Michael F. Braby
• Atlas of Living Australia
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility
• Butterflies of Dorrigo
• Tobias Westmeier’s website
• Canberra Nature Map
• Bushpea
• iNaturalist
• Learn About Butterflies
• Museums Victoria