anne.w.51
Purple Emperor - Großer Schillerfalter
Apatura iris belongs to the Nymphalidae family and has a wingspan of 55 - 70 mm. The males have a purple/blue sheen on the upper dsides of their dark brown wings. This effect is caused by iridescence and depends on the angle of view. They are distributed throughout Central Europe and as far east as Korea and China. They can only seldom be seen because they mostly fly over trees and even more seldom sitting on flowers. So I got very lucky to spot this one sitting on the ground feeding on dry ordure.
Purple Emperor - Großer Schillerfalter
Apatura iris belongs to the Nymphalidae family and has a wingspan of 55 - 70 mm. The males have a purple/blue sheen on the upper dsides of their dark brown wings. This effect is caused by iridescence and depends on the angle of view. They are distributed throughout Central Europe and as far east as Korea and China. They can only seldom be seen because they mostly fly over trees and even more seldom sitting on flowers. So I got very lucky to spot this one sitting on the ground feeding on dry ordure.