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Project Noah Nature School
Heliconius erato petiverana
The Red Postman (Heliconius erato) is one of about 40 Neotropical species of butterfly belonging to the genus Heliconius. It is also commonly known as the Small Postman, the Red Passion Flower Butterfly, or the Crimson-patched Longwing. Heliconius erato is up to about 5.5–8 cm (2.2–3.1 in)[4] in wingspan with a jerky unelegance in flight. Like Heliconius charitonius, H. erato is one of the few butterflies that collects and digests pollen, conferring considerable longevity to the adults (several months). Adults roost in groups, returning to the same location each night
My goodness bayucca, I think I had better post all the different spotting I took! So many of them look alike to me but when I post them they turn out to be something different! Guess I could always delete the duplicates! Thanks...
Tricky perspective of the underwing, but as I can see, the white stripe is relatively slim withna slight curve against the head, whereas this stripe in Melpomene is usually broader and interrupted.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/glenn_shoem...
Spotted on Jul 5, 2013
Submitted on Sep 15, 2013
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