Hypolimnas Bolina Female (IMAGE)

University of California - Berkeley

Hypolimnas Bolina Female

Caption

Shown is a female Hypolimnas bolina, also called the Blue Moon or Great Eggfly butterfly. The proportion of females in some populations of H. bolina in the South Pacific reached 99 percent as a result of infection by a bacteria that kills males before they hatch. However, researchers recently witnessed a remarkable comeback of male butterflies on some islands thanks to the rise of a suppressor gene.

Credit

Sylvain Charlat

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