Acraea Butterfly vs Great Mormon

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Acraea Butterfly Great Mormon
Scientific Name Acraea acerata Papilio memnon
Order Lepidoptera Lepidoptera
Family Nymphalidae Papilionidae
Size 45-60 mm wingspan Wingspan 120-150mm
Habitat Underground Underground
Diet Nectar Feeders Herbivores
Regions East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi) Asia
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Acraea Butterfly

A medium-sized butterfly with translucent orange wings and dark veins, giving it a delicate, window-like appearance. It is toxic and part of a large mimicry ring in East Africa.

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Did You Know?

It is a significant pest of sweet potato crops in East Africa, with larvae sometimes completely defoliating plants.

Great Mormon

A large swallowtail butterfly where females come in multiple dramatically different forms mimicking various toxic butterfly species. Males are uniformly dark.

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Did You Know?

Females exist in over 20 different color forms each mimicking a different toxic butterfly species for protection.