Birdwing Butterfly vs Mocker Swallowtail

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Birdwing Butterfly Mocker Swallowtail
Scientific Name Ornithoptera alexandrae Papilio dardanus
Order Lepidoptera Lepidoptera
Family Papilionidae Papilionidae
Size 210-310 mm wingspan 80-105 mm wingspan
Habitat Forests Underground
Diet Nectar Feeders Nectar Feeders
Regions Oceania Sub-Saharan Africa, Madagascar
Conservation Endangered Least Concern

Birdwing Butterfly

The largest butterfly in the world with a wingspan up to 31 cm. Found only in a small area of Papua New Guinea. Females are larger but males have brighter blue-green coloring.

💡

Did You Know?

Queen Alexandras birdwing is so large it was first collected by shooting it with a shotgun — it remains the worlds largest butterfly with a wingspan wider than a dinner plate.

Mocker Swallowtail

A remarkable swallowtail where females mimic several different toxic butterfly species while males look completely different. Males are yellow and black with tails.

💡

Did You Know?

Females can occur in over a dozen different color forms, each mimicking a different toxic butterfly species.