The Princess Gifu butterfly is a small swallowtail of Northeast Asia and one of the first butterflies to fly in early spring. Its yellow wings are striped in black, with red spots on the hindwings. It isn't found in the United States.
Appearance
- Appearance
- Pale yellow wings with bold black stripes, a yellow border, and red-orange spots on the hindwings. Wingspan is about 2 in (50 mm).
- Seasonal forms
- Only one generation a year; adults fly for a few weeks in spring.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- broadleaf forests
- mountain valleys
- Range
- Russian Far East (Ussuri region), northeastern China (Manchuria), North and South Korea, Japan (Honshu from the central part northward, and Hokkaido), and the Kuril Islands.
- Preferred conditions
- Prefers cool, sunny spots in broadleaf woods in early spring.
Behavior
- Diet
- Adults sip nectar from early spring flowers such as violets and fawn lilies.
- Overwintering
- Overwinters as a pupa.
Life cycle
- Caterpillar food plants
- Caterpillars feed on the leaves of wild gingers (Asarum).
Name and classification
- About the name
- Six subspecies are recognized, including coreana in Korea, inexpecta on Honshu, and yessoensis on Hokkaido.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- NENot EvaluatedNot yet assessed
- Status
- Listed as Near Threatened on Japan's national Red List. In Japan, logging has changed the light inside forests and let dense bamboo grass take over, so its food plant has declined in many places.
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