MORPHOLOGY
External characteristics
Male
Forewings: The upper side wing surface has a white colouration. The forewing upper side has a black costal border, which does not enter the cell. The discocellulars and outer border have a black colouration. There are two small white coloured subapical dots. The forewing underside has a white colouration. The discocellular bar is broad and triangular. There is a curved row of three orange spots before the apex (Pequin, 2021). Hindwings The hindwing upper side has a thin, black coloured border, which is being restricted to the fringe and the extreme edge of the wing and slightly widened at the veins. The hindwing underside has black markings and the central area and the submarginal spots are orange coloured. The central area has a somewhat diffuse white coloured border and near it is a red border, proximally in the cell and below it. There are black lines broadly united at the costal margin and there is a small ovate discocellular white spot. The discal line has a black colouration and the red line followis it being lunate. This red line is outwardly bordered by white lunules, upon which follow the orange submarginal spots (Pequin, 2021).
Female
The females generally have a different underside wing surface than the males, by being darker with broader margins on both wings (D'Abrera, 1982). There are two female forms of this species; the first one has a white ground-colour of both sides of the hindwings and the forewing upper side, while the forewing underside has a yellow colouration; the other form has a white ground-colour of both sides of the hindwings and both sides of the forewings have a yellow colouration. The two forms are otherwise alike. The forewing upper side has a black border, which enters the apex of the cell, with the black discocellular bar being completely united with it. Some specimen have a small white spot below the costal margin. There are three small subapical spots. The hindwing upper side has a marginal band, which is wide in the center and is posteriorly a little broader than anteriorly. There are long white hairs on the abdominal area. The forewing underside has a black coloured marginal band, which is narrower posteriorly. There is a subcostal spot and orange subapical spots. The hindwing underside of the female differs from the male in that there is in females a larger black area. Further, females have two or three orange spots before the anal angle (Pequin, 2021).
Subspecies and variation
Five subspecies are described, of which four subspecies are found in Papua (Pequin, 2021).