Purple Emperor Butterfly

Apatura iris

The Purple Emperor butterfly is a large brown and white butterfly superficially similar to the slightly smaller White Admiral from top and side, but has a brown "eye" on the side (underwing), two small pink circles at the rear of the forewings and, from the right direction, the male (only) has an iridescent blue-purple sheen on the topside.

They spend most of their short lives as butterflies (2-3 weeks in July/August) high in the treetops but the female will come down to (broad-leafed) sallow leaves to lay eggs and the newly-emerged males, which need salts before they can mate, have a most unpleasant taste for dog/fox/carnivore pooh (left photo above), urine, carcasses but can also be found feeding on aphid honeydew and tree sap.