To have the right to have the title “The Most big butterfly in the world” there are six representatives of the order Lepidoptera claiming at once. Each species is a leader in size, either span, or length, or wing area, or prevails in size among nocturnal and daytime butterflies.

To determine the size of the wingspan, it turns out that there are special standards established by entomologists for specimens placed in collections. The wings of butterflies must be spread in a certain way, so that a right angle is formed between the body of the insect and the lower edge of the front wings. Measurements in violation of this rule led to misunderstandings regarding the wingspan, since the indicators increased by 0.5-1.8 cm.

Scoop agrippa

Thysania agrippina - moth, the largest in the world based on its wingspan. According to various sources, it reaches 25-31 cm. A collection specimen from Costa Rica is known, which had a span of 28 cm. The span of another Brazilian specimen, caught in 1934, was 30.8 cm. But this is not known case, how accurately the measurements were taken.

The coloring of the insect's wings is quite inconspicuous: on a light gray, almost white background, symmetrical strokes with wavy lines of brown and brown alternate. Male moths are more attractively colored than females. However, this is only visible when the butterfly's wings are folded. On their lower side, closer to the abdomen, the color is brown, turning into a blue-violet iridescent tone with bright white spots.

The distribution area of ​​the world's largest butterfly is South and Central America; the insect is also found in Mexico. The typical area where the species predominantly lives is the jungle of South America. The lifestyle of insects is poorly studied; presumably these butterflies, like caterpillars, feed on the leaves of one of the plants of the legume family. Life expectancy and reproductive characteristics are unknown.

If you ask entomologists which butterfly is the largest in the world based on total wing size, they will deservedly name Coscinocera hercules. It is ahead of all other lepidoptera in this indicator. Their span in females does not exceed 27 cm. However, the area can reach 263 cm2. Males are slightly smaller, colored much darker than females, distinguished by long tail-shaped corners of the hind wings, sometimes elongated by 13 cm. Each of the four wings of individuals of both sexes has a transparent eye spot, which is larger and more noticeable in females.

Indeed, the wings of this nocturnal species are the most massive and largest, therefore, if you do not take into account the span, Koscinocera hercules can be considered the largest butterfly on the planet. Its habitat is the tropical forests of Papua New Guinea and one of the northern regions of Australia.

Female Queen Alexandra's Birdwing

The butterfly with the world's largest wingspan of any diurnal species is Ornithoptera alexandrae. Enough interesting story associated with the discovery of this species in 1906 by zoologist Albert Meek. On the Pacific Islands near Australia, he compiled a collection of insects for the avid butterfly collector banker Rothschild. It was he who in 1907 gave the largest butterfly in the world a name associated with the name of Queen Alexandra, the wife of the English King Edward VII. As this species flutters through the treetops tall trees, the first specimen obtained, which turned out to be a female, was shot with a gun. Small bright birds, from which they were later made into stuffed animals, were shot down with cartridges loaded with tiny shot or mustard seeds, so as not to damage the birds’ plumage. The same charges were used for large flying insects.

What the world's largest butterfly (among diurnal species) looks like depends on the sex of the individual. Males are smaller, with more graceful and brighter colored wings, the span of which does not exceed 20 cm. Females have a velvety brown coloring with a beige-white pattern. Their wingspan sometimes reaches 27 cm, and their abdomen, 8 cm long, weighs about 12 grams. Ornithoptera alexandrae - endemic, living only in tropical wet forests one of the regions of the mountains of New Guinea. After a volcanic eruption in the middle of the last century destroyed most of the lepidopteran population, they are considered a rare species.

The most common of the largest butterfly species is Attacus atlas. The insect is not much inferior in scope and wing area to Koscinocere hercules. You can verify this by looking at a 1922 specimen from the Australian Museum: the width of the wingspan of this individual is 24 cm. Higher figures are often found due to incorrect position of the wings when measuring the insect. Therefore, the atlas peacock eye is not considered the largest butterfly in the world.

Photos of this species are plentiful and easily taken by tourists while traveling in the south-eastern countries of Asia. And this is not surprising, because the habitat of the Atlas peacock eye is very wide in this part of the world, and the list of food plants for the caterpillars is very diverse. Large, thick caterpillars accumulate nutrients on which adult butterflies live, since they themselves do not have developed oral apparatus and do not feed throughout their short life.

In India, the species is bred artificially. From the threads of huge (palm-sized) cocoons, high-strength woolly farg silk of natural beige-brown shades is produced on a non-industrial scale. For residents of Taiwan, cocoons often replace wallets.

Sailboat antimah

Papilio antimachus is not considered the largest butterfly in the world, but it is the largest diurnal species in Africa. In this species, the males are larger, the wingspan of which sometimes reaches 25 cm. The average size is 18-23 cm. Such a significant distance between the front wings is created due to their highly elongated apices. Antimah swallowtails are brightly colored creatures with brownish, ocher, orange and red tonal tints of the general background and a dark, almost black pattern.

The first specimen (male) brought to England and given a scientific description dates back to 1775, it was caught in Sierra Leone. Only a hundred years later, a second sample was obtained and found its way to Europe. The first female Papilio antimachus caught was brought to members of Lord Banker Rothschild's expedition by the natives in 1882.

The butterfly's habitat on the African continent is quite wide; it can be found in humid tropical forests. However, the species is one of the few. Males often accumulate in large colonies on plant flowers. Females prefer dense tree crowns and practically do not descend or fly out into open spaces.

This nocturnal insect is considered the most beautiful and longest of all the large butterflies in the world. Even the females of the Madagascar comet, larger and more massive than the males, have a wingspan that does not exceed 18 cm. But their lower corners of the hind wings are excessively elongated. In males, hypertrophied narrow “tails” reach 16 cm, which in total with the rest of the wing length is more than 30 cm. In females, the “tails” are twice as wide and shorter (8 cm).

It's not just its unusual trail that makes the Madagascar comet attractive. Its bright yellow color is decorated with “eyes”, one on each wing, a rich brown color with a black “pupil” dot in the center. The coloring is complemented by wavy brown-red lines, brown-black spots at the tops of the wings and a black border on the lower wings.

Argema mittrei is endemic, found only in the tropical rainforests of Madagascar. In the country, the species is bred in captivity for sale to collectors. In 1995, a 500 ariary banknote was issued in Madagascar, where, among other endemics of the country, the Madagascar comet is depicted.

Sailboat Maak

Not the largest butterfly on the planet, Papilio maackii is the largest representative of the order, found in Russia. Lives on o. Kunashir, in Primorye, Amur region, Southern Sakhalin. The wingspan of females is 13.5 cm, males - 12.5 cm.

Maak's swallowtails have a very beautiful rainbow coloration. Males are distinguished by iridescence from malachite green to cobalt blue. In females, the color varies depending on the subspecies.

Butterflies are decorations of all fields and vegetable gardens in spring and summer season. It’s nice to see this insect with the beautiful color of its wings on a branch. However, you and I can rarely meet giant butterflies in the wild; more often they are miniature.

In this article you will learn about who the largest butterfly in the world is, what it looks like and where it lives. An insect of amazing size that pleases the eye with its appearance.

So, the title of the largest belongs to the butterfly tizania agrippina - the wingspan of different individuals is 25-31 cm, most often 27-28 cm. The butterfly is also known under other names - agrippa or scoop agrippina. This is a nocturnal moth, which is why the name moth or moth appeared.

Facts about Tizania Agrippina

• Tizania agrippa is the largest butterfly in the world in terms of wingspan. However, the largest butterfly in terms of wing area is another butterfly - the atlas peacock eye.
• Agrippa's wingspan is 25-31 cm, these are statements from various sources. More specific data indicate 29.8 cm in an individual that was found in Brazil. But even from here you can lose 1 cm in favor of violating entomological measurement rules. Therefore, the maximum wingspan of a butterfly that has been measured is 28.8 cm.
• Tizania belongs to a small genus of butterflies that is poorly studied. These butterflies are protected by law in some states of Brazil.
• Agrippa lives in Central and South America, and is also found in Mexico.
• The largest butterfly in the world belongs to the family of nocturnal butterflies, which is why it is also called the moth.
• The color of the wings resembles the bark of a tree and allows the insect to camouflage itself.

Caught specimens of Tisani agrippina

The largest cutworm specimens were caught twice. The first butterfly was found in Costa Rica. Measurements showed a wingspan of 28.6 cm. The second one is larger – 29.8 cm, and was found in Brazil.

It is worth noting that the measurements were not carried out according to entomological rules, and there is an error. Therefore, you can safely take off a centimeter from the indicated dimensions.

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Description of the Agrippa butterfly

The largest butterfly in the world has gray or White background, on which dark spots are located. This color allows it to camouflage itself on the bark of trees. The edges of the wings are sinuous. The color may vary in different individuals.

Scientists have already studied more than 150 thousand species of butterflies. According to preliminary estimates, science knows nothing about at least 100 thousand species! Among such diversity there are amazing specimens. For example, acetosia is the smallest butterfly in the world. It can only be found in Great Britain; the body length and wingspan of the baby are only 2 mm. Rediculosis is 2 times more. Its wingspan is already 4 mm. What is the largest butterfly in the world? The article will tell you about giant moths, which are larger than a starling.

Selection criteria

It would seem that what could be easier than determining which butterfly is the largest on Earth? Measure the wings, compare with other moths - and you're done! But it's not that simple. Entomologists argue what to compare: wingspan or area? While there is no exact answer, we will separately present the winners in each category.

Scoop Agrippina

She is also called Agrippa or Tisania Agrippina. This insect has the largest wingspan in the world - 27-29 cm. In 1934, an agrippa with a wingspan of 30.8 cm was caught in the tropical forests of South America. Mario Callegari, a well-known entomologist in scientific circles, claims that in 1997 in Peru Selva caught Agrippa with a wingspan of 31.2 cm!

The butterfly is distributed throughout the South American continent and is also found in Central America. The background of the wings is light gray or white. Along it is a pattern of alternating clear, sinuous lines of dark brown color. Bandages and brown or brown spots-smears are visible between the lines. The edges of the wings are neat zigzag. The body is stocky, 9 cm long, striped, like a zebra.

The antennae are long and mobile. When a butterfly sits with its wings spread out on a gray tree trunk, it becomes almost invisible. Nature gave it such excellent camouflage to protect it from birds and other insectivores.

The noctuid moth Agrippina has so far been little studied. It is known that it is predominantly nocturnal. It is believed that its larvae, like adults, feed on the greenery of plants of the genus Cassia, belonging to the legume family.

The caterpillars grow up to 16 cm in length. The female attracts the male with a special odorous secretion, the smell of which the male can smell several kilometers away.

The species is classified as endangered and is under government protection in Brazil.

Peacock-eye Hercules

The Peacock-Eyed Butterfly Hercules or Koscinocera Hercules rightfully claims the title of the largest butterfly in the world. The wingspan reaches 28 cm in females, 26-27 cm in males, and their area is simply huge - 263 sq.cm. In males, the hind wings end in long (up to 12 cm) spurs.

The butterfly has a very beautiful bright color, indeed, from a distance it resembles peacock feathers.

This beauty lives on the Australian mainland and on the islands of New Guinea. Leads a nocturnal lifestyle. Butterfly caterpillars also grow very large - up to 17 cm in length. Feeds on leaves of willow, lilac, late bird cherry, walnut, stream tree. Breeds well in captivity.

Peacock-eye Atlas

Another giant butterfly. It has a wingspan of up to 26 cm, their area is 220 sq. cm. Lives in tropical rainforests in southern China, in South-East Asia(from Thailand to Indonesia, on the islands of Java and Kalimantan). By the way, it was on the island of Java that an Atlas specimen with a wingspan of 26.2 cm was caught and officially measured.

The wings of the moth are very richly colored: on a general brown background of various shades there are patterns, straight and winding lines of red, white, yellow, and silver. In the middle of the wings there are large transparent triangles with black edging. The edges are bordered with a velvety light brown ribbon with black parallel stripes.

Due to the intricately curved shape of the front wings, this butterfly is called the “Snake-headed Moth” in Hong Kong. They are also called “Princes of Darkness” because they are nocturnal.

The peculiarity of the insect is the absence of a mouth. Atlas lives only 2 weeks, and does not eat at all, subsisting on nutrients, accumulated in the body of the caterpillar. Its main task is reproduction.

The female exudes pheromones, which the male senses 10-15 km away from her! While the male is looking for her, she sits motionless in the dense crown of a tree. These butterflies have the longest sexual intercourse in the animal world - mating lasts several hours. After this, the butterfly lays eggs and soon dies.

The caterpillar of this moth is also very interesting: large, up to 10 cm in length. The light green body is all covered with long bluish shoots, which seem to be crushed on top by white prickly frost.

Peacock-eye Atlas useful butterfly. In Thailand, its huge cocoons are used by natives as wallets. In India, they are grown on farms to produce fagar silk. This thread is superior in quality to silk silkworm. It is distinguished by unprecedented durability, high strength and excellent wooliness.

A giant butterfly can be seen at the Moscow Zoo.

Sailboat Maak

Other giants

The article examined the world's largest butterflies. Also in this row are:

• Ornithoptera (Birdwing) of Queen Alexandra. The wingspan is up to 26 cm. It is the largest daytime butterfly on earth. Found exclusively in the territory of Papua New Guinea.
• The Antimachus swallowtail is the largest butterfly in Africa. Leads a daily lifestyle. The wingspan of males is up to 23-25 ​​cm.
• The pear peacock eye is the largest European butterfly and is nocturnal. The wingspan reaches 15.5 cm.
• Maak's swallowtail is a day moth, the largest in Russia. The wingspan is up to 14 cm. Males have a very beautiful coloring: green threads of various shades shine like lurex on the dark green glossy background of the wings, and black fringe borders the edges. The hind wings are decorated with dark blue spurs.

The agrippina moth or, as it is otherwise called, agrippina tysania (Thysania agrippina) is the largest butterfly in the world, the wingspan of which usually reaches 30 cm.

Scoop agrippina

And in 1934, the largest individual of this species with a wingspan of 30.8 cm was caught in Brazil. The owners of the record size among lepidopterans are nocturnal and feed on the leaves of shrubs of the genus Cassia.

Tisani agrippina butterflies can be found in Mexico, Central and South America. They are believed to migrate from southern regions to the state of Texas.

Scoop agrippina

Pattern on the wings of a butterfly of the Tisani agrippina species

However, there is another species of butterfly in the world with no less impressive sizes. A butterfly that lives in the tropical forests of Madagascar, called Argema mittrei, does not have such a large wingspan as the Agrippina cutworm (14-16 cm), but is also considered one of the largest butterflies on the planet. This is so because its wings are larger in area than the wings of Agrippina, and also because individuals of this species have “tails” on the hind wings, which can reach 13 cm.

Argema mitrei. The female Argema mithraea accumulates all the necessary food reserves in the caterpillar stage, since, as an adult, this butterfly does not feed at all.

Argema mitrei (bottom view).

Argema mittrei (top view)

International scientific name

Thysania agrippina Cramer

Synonyms

• Phalaena agrippina(Cramer, )
• Syrnia strix(Hübner, )
• Phalaena strix

Description

The main background of the wings is white or light gray, on which there is a pattern formed from alternating dark (usually brown and brown) spots and strokes. The coloring of the wings shows a clear pattern of dark brown lines and bands. The premarginal line is sinuous. Coloration varies among different individuals of a given species: in some of them the brown pattern is more pronounced than in others, sometimes dominating the white background of the wings. The underparts are dark brown with white spots, with a metallic violet-blue sheen in males.

Largest butterfly

The scoop Agrippina is considered to be the most major representative groups of Lepidoptera by wingspan. Various literary sources provide slightly different data on the maximum wingspan of its wings, which range from 25 to 31 cm. At the same time, many authors do not indicate the sources of the information they provide. At the same time, most sources give the maximum wingspan of its wings within the range of 270–280 mm. It is known for certain that there are at least two specimens of the Agrippina cutworm, which can be considered the largest ever caught. The first was caught in Costa Rica and with a front wing length of 148 mm, it has a wingspan of 286 mm. The second, obtained in Brazil, with a wingspan of 298 mm and a front wing length of 134 mm. However, a caveat should be made that these specimens were not distributed in accordance with the standards for entomological collections. The lower edge of their front wings does not form a 90-degree angle with the body, resulting in an “artificial” increase in wingspan. When carrying out a “reconstruction” of the correct mounting of these individuals, their wingspan in both cases does not exceed 27 - 28 cm.

Area

Taxonomy

The scoop agrippina belongs to a small genus Thysania (Dalman, 1824), which is part of the subfamily Calpinae belonging to the family Erebidae. Along with it, it includes two more types: Thysania pomponia (Jordan, 1924) and Thysania zenobia (Cramer, 1777). These two species are significantly inferior to Agrippina in maximum sizes, having a wingspan of only 10 - 15 cm. All members of the genus are found exclusively in the Neotropical zoogeographic region.

Lifestyle

Security

The species is classified as En (Endangered) in areas such as the state of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil.

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Notes

1. Life of animals. Arthropods: trilobites, chelicerates, trachea-breathers. Onychophora / Ed. Gilyarova M. S., Pravdina F. N.. - 2nd, revised.. - M.: Education, 1984. - T. 3. - 463 p.
2. Big Soviet encyclopedia- Volume 4, State Scientific Publishing House, 1950 Page. 15
3. Veybren Landman. Butterflies. Illustrated encyclopedia. - M.: Labyrinth Press, 2002. - 272 p. - (Illustrated Encyclopedia). - ISBN 5-9287-0274-4.
4. Kaabak L. V., Sochivko A. V. Butterflies of the world. - M.: Avanta+, 2003. ISBN 5-94623-008-5.
5. Stanek V. Ya. Illustrated encyclopedia of insects. - Prague: Artia, 1977. - 560 p.
6. Metcalf, G.L. & W.P. Flint. 1951. Destructive and useful insects, 3rd ed. McGraw-Hill, New York.
7. Frost, S.W. 1959. Insect life and natural history, 2nd ed. Dover Publications, New York.
8. Folson, J.W. 1906. Entomology. P. Blakiston's Son, Philadelphia.
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An excerpt characterizing the Scoop agrippina

“I’ve been waiting for you for a long time,” as if this frightened and happy girl said, with her smile that appeared behind the ready tears, raising her hand on Prince Andrei’s shoulder. They were the second couple to enter the circle. Prince Andrey was one of the best dancers of his time. Natasha danced superbly. Her feet in ballroom satin shoes quickly, easily and independently of her did their job, and her face shone with the delight of happiness. Her bare neck and arms were thin and ugly. Compared to Helen's shoulders, her shoulders were thin, her breasts were vague, her arms were thin; but Helen already seemed to have a varnish on from all the thousands of glances sliding over her body, and Natasha seemed like a girl who had been exposed for the first time, and who would have been very ashamed of it if she had not been assured that it was so necessary.
Prince Andrei loved to dance, and wanting to quickly get rid of the political and intelligent conversations with which everyone turned to him, and wanting to quickly break this annoying circle of embarrassment formed by the presence of the sovereign, he went to dance and chose Natasha, because Pierre pointed him out to her and because she was the first of the pretty women to come into his sight; but as soon as he embraced this thin, mobile figure, and she moved so close to him and smiled so close to him, the wine of her charm went to his head: he felt revived and rejuvenated when, catching his breath and leaving her, he stopped and began to look on the dancers.

After Prince Andrei, Boris approached Natasha, inviting her to dance, and the adjutant dancer who started the ball, and more young people, and Natasha, handing over her excess gentlemen to Sonya, happy and flushed, did not stop dancing the whole evening. She did not notice anything and did not see anything that occupied everyone at this ball. She not only did not notice how the sovereign spoke for a long time with the French envoy, how he spoke especially graciously to such and such a lady, how prince such and such did and said this, how Helen was a great success and received special attention from such and such; she did not even see the sovereign and noticed that he left only because after his departure the ball became more lively. One of the merry cotillions, before dinner, Prince Andrei danced with Natasha again. He reminded her of their first date in the Otradnensky alley and how she could not sleep on a moonlit night, and how he involuntarily heard her. Natasha blushed at this reminder and tried to justify herself, as if there was something shameful in the feeling in which Prince Andrei involuntarily overheard her.
Prince Andrei, like all people who grew up in the world, loved to meet in the world that which did not have a common secular imprint on it. And such was Natasha, with her surprise, joy and timidity and even mistakes in French. He treated and spoke to her especially tenderly and carefully. Sitting next to her, talking with her about the simplest and most insignificant subjects, Prince Andrei admired the joyful sparkle of her eyes and smile, which related not to the speeches spoken, but to her inner happiness. While Natasha was being chosen and she stood up with a smile and danced around the hall, Prince Andrei especially admired her timid grace. In the middle of the cotillion, Natasha, having completed her figure, still breathing heavily, approached her place. The new gentleman invited her again. She was tired and out of breath, and apparently thought of refusing, but immediately again cheerfully raised her hand on the gentleman’s shoulder and smiled at Prince Andrey.
“I would be glad to rest and sit with you, I’m tired; but you see how they choose me, and I’m glad about it, and I’m happy, and I love everyone, and you and I understand all this,” and that smile said a lot more. When the gentleman left her, Natasha ran across the hall to take two ladies for the figures.
“If she approaches her cousin first, and then another lady, then she will be my wife,” Prince Andrei said to himself quite unexpectedly, looking at her. She approached her cousin first.
“What nonsense sometimes comes to mind! thought Prince Andrey; but the only thing that is true is that this girl is so sweet, so special, that she won’t dance here for a month and get married... This is a rarity here,” he thought when Natasha, straightening the rose that had fallen back from her bodice, sat down next to him.
At the end of the cotillion, the old count approached the dancers in his blue tailcoat. He invited Prince Andrei to his place and asked his daughter if she was having fun? Natasha did not answer and only smiled a smile that reproachfully said: “How could you ask about this?”
- More fun than ever in my life! - she said, and Prince Andrei noticed how quickly she stood up skinny arms to hug their father and immediately sank down. Natasha was as happy as she had never been in her life. She was at that highest level of happiness when a person becomes completely trusting and does not believe in the possibility of evil, misfortune and grief.

At this ball, Pierre for the first time felt insulted by the position that his wife occupied in the highest spheres. He was gloomy and absent-minded. There was a wide crease across his forehead, and he, standing at the window, looked through his glasses, not seeing anyone.
Natasha, heading to dinner, passed him.
Pierre's gloomy, unhappy face struck her. She stopped in front of him. She wanted to help him, to convey to him the excess of her happiness.
“How fun, Count,” she said, “isn’t it?”
Pierre smiled absently, obviously not understanding what was being said to him.
“Yes, I’m very glad,” he said.
“How can they be unhappy with something,” Natasha thought. Especially someone as good as this Bezukhov?” In Natasha’s eyes, everyone who was at the ball were equally kind, sweet, wonderful people, loving friend friend: no one could offend each other, and therefore everyone should be happy.

The next day, Prince Andrei remembered yesterday's ball, but did not dwell on it for long. “Yes, it was a very brilliant ball. And also... yes, Rostova is very nice. There is something fresh, special, not St. Petersburg, that distinguishes her.” That's all he thought about yesterday's ball, and after drinking tea, he sat down to work.