Guardian Nature School Team Contact Blog Project Noah Facebook Project Noah Twitter

A worldwide community photographing and learning about wildlife

Join Project Noah!
nature school apple icon

Project Noah Nature School visit nature school

Smooth-eyed bushbrown

Orsotriaena medus

Description:

Orsotriaena medus is a medium-sized butterfly with wingspan of 45 to 55 mm (1.8 to 2.2 in). The butterfly is dark brown above with a thin marginal pale border. The upper hindwing having a thin submarginal line. There are no eye-spots on the upper side of the wings.[3] Below, the butterfly has a white discal band which runs across both wings. It has five ocelli beloe (eyespots) on the undersides of the wings. In the forewing, it has two eyespots, with the anterior eyespot slightly smaller. In the hindwing, it has two ocelli on the apical region and a separate ocellus in the tornal (hindmost) region. The uppermost of the eyespots in the hindwing are greatly smaller, while the remaining two are more or less of equal sizes.[3] The eggs are spherical and yellowish. They are laid on the leaf blades and stems of grasses.[3] The larvae are spindle-shaped, transversely wrinkled, and covered in small tubercles, giving it a rough appearance. Two long brown spines on the head point forward, while a pair of pinkish prongs project from the anal segment. The colour above is rosy-red with a blue dorsal and a white lateral line, below which, the underparts are green.[4] The pupae are perpendicularly suspended, slender and regular, except that the head-case is produced into a long beak formed of two thin processes like split straws. The colour is whitish brown to yellow, with faint bands of a darker shades. It resembles a large grain of barley or a tiny banana.[4][5] Orsotriaena medus superficially resemble members of the genus Mycalesis (bushbrowns), but can readily be identified by the number of spots.

Species ID Suggestions



Sign in to suggest organism ID

No Comments

North Central Province, Sri Lanka

Spotted on Feb 10, 2013
Submitted on Mar 16, 2013

Related Spottings

Medus Brown Dark Grass Brown The Dark Grass-Brown Butterfly "Nigger" / Smooth-eyed Bushbrown

Nearby Spottings

Spotting White-winged Tern Wandering Wisp Paddyfield Parasol
Noah Guardians
Noah Sponsors
join Project Noah Team

Join the Project Noah Team