The Camberwell Beauty

The Camberwell Beauty is the common name for a large purple-brown butterfly, with a fast and direct flight, that is found across North America, Europe, and regions of mainland Asia to Japan. The name originates from an early scientific description of specimens seen around willow trees in August 1748, at Cool Arbour Lane, Camberwell. Then a small village near London, Camberwell is now part of London?s urban sprawl. The butterfly's maroon-velvet wings, edged, or "hemmed", with pale lacy cream, provide other common names such as white-bordered beauty, and mourning cloak (from the traditional funereal garment, although this name is sometimes written as "morning cloak"). On its upper wings, within the whitish-yellow border, is a row of blue spots set within dark patches. The wing undersides are similar to the uppers but lack blue patches. Males and females are very similar, with wingspans of about 6.5 cm (2 y in), and there is little variation in colour, pattern, and size across the range.

Fast flyers, Camberwell Beauty butterflies sleep during the winter in sheltered, hidden places. They are one of the first butterflies to emerge in spring, around March and April. With their strong summer flight in open country and scattered woodland, at speeds of around 25 km/h (16 mph), they are sometimes mistaken for small birds.

Camberwell Beauty adults feed on various plants, including ripe fruit in orchards. They habitually hold their wings out sideways, rather than folding them above the body, as in most butterflies. Eggs are laid in late spring and hatch into glossy black caterpillars with white spots, red patches along the back, and rows of spines. These larvae feed on willow, birch, elm, poplar, and hackberry. In August or later, depending on the temperature, the adults find their winter sleeping places.

Camberwell Beauties are occasional migrants to Britain, either by flight or as a result of hibernating in timber cargoes, mainly from Scandinavia, although they do not appear to breed in Britain.

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