Thursday, July 14, 2011

A True Hermaphrodite Butterfly?


Reportedly, it's the new attraction in London at The Natural History Museum. Many media outlets are identifying this hermaphrodite as the "Great Mormon Butterfly". The left half is male and the right half is female with male and female reproductive organs merged right down the middle:

A stunning butterfly that emerged from its chrysalis as male on one side, female on the other, has astounded curators at the Natural History Museum in London.

The peculiar nature of the freshly hatched great mormon butterfly was spotted when staff noticed a striking difference between its wing colourings and other features.

The insect, which has a 10cm wingspan, is almost black on its male side, but the female side is much paler, with clearly visible flecks of blue, red and tortoiseshell.

A closer inspection revealed the insect to have one antenna longer than the other, a single male clasp on its abdomen, and male and female reproductive organs that had fused down the middle.

1 comment:

  1. I'm not sure where you are getting your info, but great topic. I needs to spend some time learning much more or understanding more. Thanks for wonderful info I was looking for this information for my mission.

    Here is my website - JasmineLive

    ReplyDelete