Cressida cressida (Fabricius, 1775)

OCCURENCE

Habitat: Forest - Subtropical/Tropical Moist Lowland,Forest - Subtropical/Tropical Swamp
This butterfly inhabits primary and secondary rainforest. Both sexes occur in very large numbers in favourable conditions, flying directly 1-4 metres above the ground through open areas in the forest. They usually adopt a leisurely flight and spend much time flying around foliage in full sunshine. Larvae feed on new growth of Flacourtia ryparosa (Flacourtiaceae) and possibly other species. The early stages develop very rapidly (Parsons 1998).
(IUCN 2020)

Population: This species is common where it occurs, and often abundant through most of its range. It may occur locally in immense numbers during the summer rains (Parsons 1998).
Range: This species is distributed from the northern Moluccas (Bacan, Halmahera, Obi, Kai and Aru groups), throughout mainland New Guinea (including Waigeo and the Schouten Islands), to the D'Entrecasteaux and Trobriand groups. It is essentially a lowland species, flying from sea level to about 1,200 m elevation or higher (Parsons 1998). This gives an extent of occurrence in excess of the threshold 20,000 km² for threatened species.
(IUCN 2020)

Occurrence and observation maps

Map of Life
GBIF
i-Naturalist

References

• IUCN. 2020. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2020-3. Available at: www.iucnredlist.org. (Accessed: 10 December 2020).
• Parsons, M.J. 1998. The butterflies of Papua New Guinea: Their systematics and biology. Academic Press, London.