Butterflies come in many wonderful colours and many of us enjoy marvelling at their beauty as we watch them flutter around the flowers in our gardens during the warmer months.
Recently Chris Johnson from Pennsylvania spotted this lovely lepidoptera whilst volunteering at a butterfly exhibition at Pennsylvanias Drexel University. Mr Johnson's keen eye spotted the insect whilst emptying out the exhibitions pupa chamber. Now the curious thing about the butterfly, which was confirmed later by an expert to be a Common Archduke butterfly (Lexias Pardalis), is that the creatures two right wings were those of the female of the species but those on the left resembled those of the male.
Apparently this is a rare condition called Gynandromorphy which means externally having the look of both male and female but having the reproductive organs of just one which is the opposite to hermaphrodites which have the sexual organs of both but the outwards appearance of one.
To read more about this do the clicky thing here.
Regards
The Curious Fortean.
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