A team of wildlife researchers and photographers has, for the first time, recorded and documented the complete life cycle of a rare Spotted Royal butterfly, scientifically known as Tajuria maculata, near Lakkidi in Wayanad.
The team comprising Umesh Pavukandi, David Raju, and V.K. Chandrasekharan recorded the complete life cycle of the species. They claimed that the study was being conducted for the first time in India.
Mr. Raju said the eggs of the butterfly were identified by Mr. Pavukandi. As many as 47 eggs were found on the leaves of the parasitic plant Loranthus ( Ithilkanni), attached to a coffee plant at a height of two metres from the ground. The sighting of the butterfly itself was rare, and to find the eggs in such large numbers was even rarer, he added.
