A worldwide community photographing and learning about wildlife
Heliconius ismenius telchinia
The Ismenius Tiger or Tiger Heliconian (Heliconius ismenius) is a butterfly of the Nymphalidae family found in Central America and northern South America. They are highly populous as south as Ecuador and Venezuela and as north as southern Mexico, Guatemala and Belize.[2] The H. ismenius are more commonly called the tiger-striped long wing butterfly. The H. ismenius’s nickname is blatantly derived from its long butterfly wing structure as well as the beautiful burnt orange and black stripes, which resemble the stripes of a tiger coat. Pierre Andre Latrielle, a French Zoologist, found the Heliconius ismenius in 1817. The H. ismenius is known for being the first individual evidence, other than Charles Darwin’s finch research in the Galapagos Islands, for the proof of natural selection, exemplified by Henry Walter Bates.
Photo taken at Butterfly House of Copenhagen Zoo.