Alice Springs Desert Park
ASDP Butterflies & MothsBanksia Moth – Caterpillar Caper White Butterfly Chequered Swallowtail (Papilio demoleus ssp sthenelus) Day Flying Moth / Mistletoe Moth Heliotrope Moth (Utetheisa pulchelloides) Noctuinae (Caterpillar) Processionary Caterpillar
A number of different species of butterflies are often seen flying around the desert park including the Caper White Butterfly (Belenois java teutonia).
The best place to find the Caper White Butterflies are around the plants of the caper family (Capparis spp). These include the Wild Passionfruit, also known as the Caper Bush (Capparis spinosa var. nummularia) and the Australian Native Orange (Capparis mitchellii). They can be seen laying their eggs on the host plants.
The caper plants that are hosts to the developing caterpillars grow through different instar stages. You can often see the cases of the instar, and then the developing chrysalis to emerge as the butterfly.
Check out our Fauna section on the Caper White Butterfly (Belenois java teutonia).
- Scientific classification
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Class: Insecta
- Order: Lepidoptera
- Family: Pieridae
- Genus: Belenois
- Species: B. java
- Binomial name: Belenois java
- Subspecies:
- B. j. java (Indonesia)
- B. j. savuana (Savu)
- B. j. teutonia (Australia)
- B. j. ina (Indonesia)
- B. j. peristhene (Melanesia)
- B. j. picata (Melanesia)
- B. j. micronesia (Fiji)
ASDP Butterflies & MothsBanksia Moth – Caterpillar Caper White Butterfly Chequered Swallowtail (Papilio demoleus ssp sthenelus) Day Flying Moth / Mistletoe Moth Heliotrope Moth (Utetheisa pulchelloides) Noctuinae (Caterpillar) Processionary Caterpillar
ASDP InsectsASDP Ants ASDP Opisthopsis sp ASDP Bees Amegilla chlorocyanea Bee Braunsapis sp Exoneurella eremophila Bee Lasioglossum (Chilalictus) Lasioglossum (Chilalictus) Mating Lasioglossum (Homalictus) ASDP Beetles Bush Cockroach (Ellipsidion humarale) Snout Beetle (Lixus) Transverse Ladybird ASDP Butterflies & Moths Banksia Moth – Caterpillar Caper White Butterfly Chequered Swallowtail (Papilio demoleus ssp sthenelus) Day Flying Moth / Mistletoe Moth Heliotrope Moth (Utetheisa pulchelloides) Noctuinae (Caterpillar) Processionary Caterpillar ASDP Diptera Bee Fly (Australiphthiria sp) Bee Fly (Ligyra cingulata) ASDP Hemiptera / Heteroptera Crusader Bug (Mictis profana) Ground Shield Bug ASDP Orthoptera ASDP Katydid (Taeniomenae) ASDP Wasps Potter Wasp Torymus Chalcid Wasp ASDP Tropidoderus gracilifemur
ASDP FaunaASDP Arachnida ASDP Birds ASDP Insects ASDP Reptiles Dingo Ghost Bat Greater Bilby Numbat Red Kangaroo Short-beaked Echidna Spinifex Hopping Mouse Western Quoll
Alice Springs Desert ParkFauna Flora Nature Theatre Nocturnal House