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Sticker of Red pierrot
Bug card No. 3526 of 4,939

Red pierrot

Talicada nyseus
Eats: Nectar and pollenButterfliesGardens and meadows6 legs

The red pierrot is a small butterfly dressed like a clown. Underneath, its wings are white with black spots and a wide orange band. On top they are black with a big orange patch. It loves to sit on its favourite plant, the kalanchoe.

Lives in
India, Sri Lanka and Myanmar, in gardens and forests
Wingspan
3 to 3.5 cm (1.2 to 1.4 in)
Top speed
about 11 km/h (6.8 mph)
Flying, estimate
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. It is a slow, gentle butterfly.
What does it eat?
The butterfly drinks nectar from small flowers. Its caterpillars eat the thick, juicy leaves of kalanchoe plants.
For real!Photo of Red pierrot
Picture by Kannanshanmugam, shanmugam studio,Kollam. CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How big is it?

How wide are its wings?

Red pierrot wings about 3.5 cm tip to tip (1.4 in)A toy building brick about 3.2 cm (1.3 in)A crayon about 9 cm (3.5 in)A banana about 18 cm (7.1 in)
wings as wide as 6 grains of rice in a rowcould fly across a whole football pitch in 34 seconds

How big is Red pierrot compared to YOU?

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How fast is it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

It is a weak flier. It flutters close to the ground and lands often.

2

It always sits with its wings closed, so everyone can see its bright pattern.

3

In the evening it settles under leaves and twigs to sleep, often together with others.

4

It likes shade better than sunshine.

5

It acts very fearless, as if it tasted bad, but nobody knows of any poison in its food plants.

you asked

Most asked questions about Red pierrot

?How big is the red pierrot?

Its wings are about 3 to 3.5 centimetres from tip to tip.

?What does the red pierrot eat?

The butterfly sips nectar. Its caterpillars eat kalanchoe leaves.

?Where does the red pierrot live?

In India, Sri Lanka and Myanmar, wherever kalanchoe plants grow.

For bug experts

Scientific name
Talicada nyseus
Group
Butterflies
Family
Lycaenidae
Classification
Insecta > Lepidoptera > Lycaenidae
Lives on
Asia

Where the facts come from

  1. Talicada nyseus (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
  2. Picture by Kannanshanmugam, shanmugam studio,Kollam. CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.

If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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