New Zealand red admiral
The New Zealand red admiral is a butterfly with blackish wings and bright red and white markings. It lives only in New Zealand. The Māori people call it kahukura, which means red cloak.
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Fun facts
Its caterpillars eat stinging nettles without getting hurt.
It was collected on Captain James Cook's first voyage and was one of the first New Zealand animals to get a scientific name, in 1775.
It is a strong flier and zigzags through the air.
The butterflies on the Chatham Islands look almost the same, but are more shy and jumpy.
From caterpillar to pupa takes five to six weeks, and two to three weeks later the butterfly comes out.
Most asked questions about New Zealand red admiral
?What does kahukura mean?
It is the Māori name for the red admiral and means red cloak.
?What do red admiral caterpillars eat?
Stinging nettles, especially the tall tree nettle ongaonga.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Vanessa gonerilla
- Named by
- Fabricius, 1775
- Group
- Butterflies
- Family
- Nymphalidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Lepidoptera > Nymphalidae
- Lives on
- Australia and Oceania
- Also known as
- Kahukura
Where the facts come from
- New Zealand red admiral (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Tony Wills. CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
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