With wings opened wide, a Spangle Butterfly perches on green foliage as Autumn gradually begins to settle down in the lower Himalayas. This one is a female, and like other members of its species, is classified as a swallowtail butterfly.
Scientifically, butterflies of this species are known as the Spangle Papilio Protenor, and are identified by their orange bands with black spots. Overall, the butterflies are a dark shade of brown or black. An article published in Science Daily, 2013, reveals that butterflies of this type are being studied by researchers tasked with improving mechanical aerodynamics (see the Science Daily Article 2013).
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Butterflies are believed to have appeared on Earth by 100000000 BCE (100 million years ago). During what was the mid-Cretaceous period. It was at this phase that they diverged from their Moth ancestors in what is now North America. During the Cenozoic era, butterflies underwent further diversification with the appearance of flowering plants.
However, other studies, taking into consideration fossilised remains of Lepidoptera, an order of winged insects featuring both butterflies and moths, put their appearance in the Jurassic-Trassic period, 250-145 million years ago. The oldest fossilised remains of what we now identify as a butterfly is from the time of the Palaeocene period, 64 to 56 million years ago.
While nothing much is known as to when the Spangle Papilio Protenor first evolved into being, the species was first identified and named by the Dutch entomologist Pieter Cramer in 1775 C.E.
A wealthy merchant dealing in linen and Spanish wool, Cramer not only identified the species but also provided illustrations in the first volume of a book he published, titled ‘De Uitlandsche Kapellen, voorkomende in de drie waereld-deelen Asia, Africa, America.’
Presently, the Papilio Protenor species are to be widely found in South East Asia, including the Himalayas.
Recognised subspecies are the Kumaon Spangle and the Himalayan Spangle. In Japan, another subspecies of the Papilio Protenor is known as the Kamakuracho. Named as the butterfly of Kamakura because its appearance resembled the clothing of the Kamakura Samurai.
