Common bluebottle

Characteristics

A swallowtail butterfly with an impressive bright blue color on a black background. A sky-blue pattern runs on its wings. There is red near the base and under the hind wings. They suck nectar from flowers and drink water from puddles and the ground. They are good at flying and move quickly around flowers and trees.

Ecology

Appears around May. It feeds on the leaves of plants of the camphoraceae family and makes pupae on the leaves. The larvae are green with yellow stripes that look like camphor leaves and have a protective coloration. It is also found in waterside areas such as riverbeds, and often receives water from the ground.

Habitat

It was flying over the riverbed near the confluence of the Tama River and the Asakawa River in Hino City, Tokyo. They flew from rapeseed flower to rapeseed flower and drank water from the ground. It flutters away when you get close to it, but it flies faster than you might imagine, and you can easily lose sight of it.