Biology:Ancyluris meliboeus

Short description: Species of butterfly

Meliboeus swordtail
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Riodinidae
Genus:	Ancyluris
Species:	A. meliboeus
Binomial name
Ancyluris meliboeus (Fabricius, 1777)
Synonyms
Papilio meliboeus Fabricius, 1777 Papilio pyretus Cramer, [1777] Ancyluris pyrete Hübner, [1819] Ancyluris meliboeus phonia Stichel, 1909 Ancyluris eudaemon Stichel, 1910

Ancyluris meliboeus (meliboeus swordtail) is a butterfly of the family Riodinidae. It is found in Suriname, Brazil , Colombia, Bolivia and Peru.

Underside

The wingspan is about 40 mm. A recent study has shown that it has patches of unusual microstructure on the ventral wing scales. This highly tilted, multilayered arrangement produces a bright iridescence of broad wavelength range and generates a strong flicker contrast from minimal wing movement.

Subspecies

• Ancyluris meliboeus meliboeus (Surinam, Brazil (Amazonas), Peru)
• Ancyluris meliboeus euaemon (Peru, Colombia, Bolivia)
• Ancyluris meliboeus julia (Brazil)

External links

• Now you see it - now you don’t, a study - Study of the iridescence of the wings

Wikidata ☰ Q1311390 entry