Giant Gymnopleurus vs Poplar Admiral

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Giant Gymnopleurus Poplar Admiral
Scientific Name Gymnopleurus virens Limenitis populi
Order Coleoptera Lepidoptera
Family Scarabaeidae Nymphalidae
Size 12-18 mm 70-90 mm wingspan
Habitat Grasslands Forests
Diet Dung Feeders Dung Feeders
Regions Sub-Saharan Africa Central and northern Europe, temperate Asia
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern (declining in western Europe)

Giant Gymnopleurus

A medium-sized roller dung beetle with a coppery-green sheen and a nearly spherical body shape. It is a rapid roller, moving dung balls quickly across sun-baked grasslands. Diurnal and very heat-tolerant.

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Did You Know?

Its round, compact body shape minimizes water loss in the hot, dry environments it inhabits.

Poplar Admiral

Europe's largest nymphalid butterfly with broad dark wings bearing white bands and orange submarginal crescents. It is shy and rarely descends from the forest canopy.

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Did You Know?

It is so difficult to observe that many lepidopterists travel years before seeing one in the wild.