Mexican Bluewing
Myscelia ethusa
Mexican Bluewing · Carlsbad · 7 March 2026
A Mexican Bluewing on the netting of the butterfly house, a butterfly of the forests of Mexico and Central America that reaches the Rio Grande valley of Texas, where it rests head-down on tree trunks with the wings closed and vanishes against the bark.
Deep blue-black wings scalloped at the edges, crossed by bands of iridescent blue and scattered with white spots toward the forewing tip. Most likely this species, though its relative the Blue Wave wears a similar pattern and I wouldn't rule it out. In the wild it feeds on rotting fruit and sap rather than flowers.
Birds, insects, plants and other wildlife, mostly from Brooklyn, with some from further afield.
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