evening brown butterfly

Description:

One of the evening brown butterflies, a group that ranges from Africa to Australia. Melanitis is a butterfly genus from the subfamily Satyrinae in the family Nymphalidae.

Habitat:

This butterfly observed resting on mother-in-law's tongue (Sansevieria trifasciata) in a large semi-urban yard & garden adjacent to a disturbed remnant patch of forest. This is in the equatorial tropics of northern New Guinea.