Male, Switzerland, July 2009
Male, Switzerland, July 2009
Male, June 2006, Oxfordshire
The same male viewed from a different angle
Male, Val d'Aran, July 2000
Male, Val d'Aran, July 2004
Male, July 2005, Val d'Aran
Male, July 2005, Val d'Aran
Male, Val d'Aran, July 2001
A caterpillar after hibernation - May 2010, Switzerland.
This individual is soon to shed his skin.
The caterpillar rests for the night on the mid-vein of the leaf. The picture shows the charactaristic nibbling to either side.
This is the same caterpillar a couple of days later, after shedding his/her skin
A more mature caterpillar, Switzerland, May 2010
Another caterpillar, Switzerland, May 2010
May 2010
Until 2005 I had never seen a female purple emperor. The males are far
easier to spot, as they come readily to carrion or carnivore droppings
- as well as to human sweat. Unfortunately, I was unable to photograph
the female I saw in Switzerland (Gryon) in August 2005.
Although the species is not rare in much of Europe, it is always a
great pleasure to see. Only the male sports the blue, and only when
viewed at certain angles - hence the French name for the species : Le Grand Mars Changeant. The only species with which it can be confused is the lesser purple emperor,
which has a buff ring on the forwing. The two species often fly
together and I have a video (unfortunately, an analogue video, so I
cannot transfer the pictures to the computer) of both on the ground
together, going for the same bit of dung!
In the UK the species is generally considered rare. I have only seen it
in woods near Oxford, most recently in 2006 during the last week in
June.