From the archive record
Birdwing butterflies are the largest of all Australian butterflies. The male Birdwing is brightly coloured with green, gold and black, and is smaller than the female. The larger female Birdwing is black and white, with yellow markings on the hindwings. She has a wingspan of up to 20 cm. Throngs of Birdwing butterflies can be seen around Aristolochia acuminata or Pararistolochia deltantha vines in summer in the tropical rainforests. These vines are also called Dutchman’s Pipe because of the shape of the flowers. The female Birdwing butterfly lays her eggs on the leaves of these two species of Aristolochia vines. First, she locates the correct plants by ‘tasting’ various leaves with chemical receptors in her forelegs. These receptors pick up chemical cues from the leaves of the vine. She als