Cairns birdwing facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Cairns birdwing |
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| Male at Melbourne Zoo | |
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| Female, ventral view | |
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Troidini
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Ornithoptera
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O. euphorion
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| Binomial name | |
| Ornithoptera euphorion (Gray, 1852)
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| Distribution of Ornithoptera euphorion (in green) and other species of Ornithoptera in Australia | |
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The Cairns birdwing (Ornithoptera euphorion) is a very special butterfly. It lives only in north-eastern Australia. This makes it Australia's largest butterfly that is endemic. Endemic means it is found naturally in only one specific place.
People also call it the Cooktown birdwing or northern birdwing. These names come from the Australian cities of Cairns and Cooktown. These cities are in the area where this amazing butterfly lives. Birdwings are a group of large, colorful butterflies. They are named "birdwings" because their big, strong wings make them look like birds when they fly.
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What Does the Cairns Birdwing Look Like?
The Cairns birdwing is a very large butterfly. Female butterflies can have a wingspan of up to 15 centimeters (about 6 inches). Males are a bit smaller, with a wingspan of up to 12.5 centimeters (about 5 inches).
There is another butterfly, the Priam's birdwing, which is even bigger. It can reach 19 centimeters (about 7.5 inches) across. Priam's birdwing is the largest butterfly in Australia. However, it is not endemic, meaning it is found in other places too, like New Guinea.
Male vs. Female Butterflies
Male Cairns birdwings are mostly black. They have bright emerald green flashes on their upper wings. These green parts make them look very striking.
Female Cairns birdwings are larger than the males. But they do not have the green color. Their upper wings are plain black with white patches. This difference in color helps you tell them apart easily.
A Rare Color Change
Once, a very rare genetic change happened with these butterflies. A single female butterfly had babies that looked different. The female babies were pale instead of dark. The male babies were golden instead of green. This was a very unusual and beautiful change!
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This is a male Cairns birdwing. It was drawn for a book called Icones Ornithopterorum.
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This is a female Cairns birdwing from the same book. Notice how she does not have the green color.
Where Do Cairns Birdwings Live?
Cairns birdwings are found in Queensland, Australia. Their home stretches from Mount Webb and Cooktown in the north down to Mackay in the south.
They love to live in rainforests, especially in the wet tropical areas of Queensland. You can often find them near rivers and close to the coast. You might even see them flying around in the city of Cairns! They are often attracted to bright flowers in gardens. Some of their favorite flowers are Lantana, Hibiscus, and Bougainvillea.
The good news is that Cairns birdwings are quite common. They are not considered an endangered species.
Life Story of the Cairns Birdwing
Like all butterflies, the Cairns birdwing goes through a life cycle. It starts as an egg, then becomes a larva (caterpillar), then a pupa, and finally an adult butterfly.
Eggs (Ova)
The eggs of the Cairns birdwing are a little bigger than those of a similar butterfly, O. richmondia. A female Cairns birdwing can lay a lot of eggs in her lifetime. She might lay as many as 300 eggs!
Caterpillars (Larvae)
The caterpillars look a lot like those of O. richmondia. Their color can be light or dark grey. These caterpillars eat the leaves of certain plants. These plants belong to a group called Aristolochia. Some of the plants they eat are Aristolochia acuminata, A. indica, A. pubera, and A. thoszetti. They also eat Pararistolochia australopithecurus, P. deltantha, and P. sparusifolia.
There is a plant called Dutchman's pipe. It was brought to Australia from other places. This plant is very dangerous for Cairns birdwing caterpillars. If they eat its leaves, it will kill them. Because of this, people are asked not to plant Dutchman's pipe in Queensland, New South Wales, and the Northern Territory.
Pupae
After the caterpillar has eaten enough, it turns into a pupa. The pupa of the Cairns birdwing is usually light brown and yellow. This is similar to other butterflies in its group. Inside the pupa, the caterpillar changes into an adult butterfly.
Adult Butterflies (Imago)
When adult male Cairns birdwings have just mated with a female, they sometimes guard her. They do this to make sure a special "mating plug" stays in place. This plug helps prevent other males from mating with the female. It takes about a day for the plug to become fully hard.
Both male and female butterflies flutter their wings very fast when they are feeding on flowers. This helps them stay balanced. Males sometimes even compete with small birds for flowers. They usually win by flying aggressively towards the birds.
Cairns birdwings eat Aristolochia plants when they are caterpillars. These plants contain chemicals that make the butterflies taste bad to animals that might try to eat them. This helps protect the butterflies from predators. However, they can sometimes be caught by golden silk orb-weaver spiders.
