Postman, resting

Heliconius sp.

Longwing · Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden · 7 February 2026

A postman butterfly at rest with the wings closed in the butterfly house at Fairchild, the red-white-black banding showing on the underside. A longwing of the American tropics, from Mexico to Brazil, and one that roosts in groups at night on the same twig for weeks.

The pattern belongs to two unrelated species, Heliconius erato and Heliconius melpomene, which mimic each other so closely that telling them apart usually needs the fine red rays at the base of the hindwing, not visible here, so I've left it at genus. They are the classic case of two poisonous species sharing one warning so that a bird only has to learn it once.