Chinese Windmill Butterfly vs Lotis Blue Butterfly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Chinese Windmill Butterfly Lotis Blue Butterfly
Scientific Name Byasa alcinous Lycaeides argyrognomon lotis
Order Lepidoptera Lepidoptera
Family Papilionidae Lycaenidae
Size Wingspan 75-95 mm 2-2.5 cm wingspan
Habitat Forests Beaches & Coastal
Diet Nectar Feeders Herbivores
Regions China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan United States
Conservation Least Concern Critically Endangered

Chinese Windmill Butterfly

A dark swallowtail with red-spotted hindwings that rotates its wings in a slow windmill-like pattern during flight. It is widespread in East Asian lowland forests.

💡

Did You Know?

Its distinctive slow, spinning flight style gives it the common name windmill butterfly.

Lotis Blue Butterfly

A small blue butterfly historically found in sphagnum bog habitats in coastal Mendocino County, California. It has not been seen since 1983.

💡

Did You Know?

Despite extensive searches, no living individuals have been found in over 40 years.