Red Lacewing Butterfly

Common Name: Red Lacewing

Scientific Name: Cethosia Biblis

Wingspan: 8–9 centimetres (3.1–3.5 in)

Location: Indian Subcontinent eastwards to Southeast Asia and East Asia (the eastern limit being the Philippines, and the southern limit being to Indonesia)

This is a medium-sized butterfly. In males the dorsal sides of the wings are bright orange-red, framed by a black outline with white spots. The undersides range from bright red to pale brown, interlaced by black and white. This astonishing pattern helps to disguise the shape of the butterfly, while the intense colour of the dorsal sides of the wings is a warning to predators that the Red Lacewing has a bad taste, deriving from the poisonous host plants of the caterpillars. The dorsal sides of the wings of the females are grayish-brownish with black spots and white bands and spots on the black margins.

Red Lacewing