Male, Orange Shoemaker Buttterfly



Look at the orange shape on his wings! NO wonder he gets the name he has.

Catonephele Orites, also known as the Orange Shoemaker

The Orange Shoemaker butterfly is one that I learned about first through the Butterfly House, which is a butterfly conservatory where they allow the butterflies to emerge from their cocoons. I captured the picture above on one of my trips to the Midwest USA and thought that it was a very interesting butterfly indeed.

Anyone that knows me, knows that I just love butterflies and that there is no hiding it. So seeing this new one had my fingers grabbing for the camera! One of the things I found out about this butterfly, is that the male and female are very different from each other. They look like a completely different butterfly and usually there is more similarity. The one pictured above with the orange markings, is the male Orange Shoemaker.

The Female Orange Shoemaker has a completely different look

Other names for the Orange Shoemaker and other facts

There is another interesting name for this butterfly, and it is the Grecian Shoemaker, and Catonephele numilia. As I learn more about the names, I will share it here, as the Grecian part is rather odd considering the butterfly is from South America!

The wingspan of the Orange Shoemaker is approximately three inches long, or 7.5 cm. It likes rotting fruit to eat, and you can observe this in the conservatories or in nature I am sure in South America. Fruit that falls from a tree naturally in the rain forest will burst open, and the surrounding temperatures causes the ripe fruit smell to attract such beauties as these butterflies.

Behaviors and Preferences of the Orange Shoemaker Butterfly

The Orange Shoemaker prefers a solitary existence in more shady areas. For example the rain forest sub canopy is an ideal place for these butterflies, and one may not naturally come across their path too often in the wild.

If you do see them, you might see a male Orange Shoemaker waiting for a female in patches of sunlight, dappled throughout the rain forest. They like tree trunks, and can be seen in the early morning through the afternoon time. While eating the fallen fruits of the rain forest, the way the wings rest helps to insure its disguise. It blends right in with its surroundings which helps its survival.

I love butterflies! Orange Shoemaker is just one of them

This blog is dedicated to the Orange Shoemaker Butterfly. I love butterflies and this one has some unique features on it, and some different patterns as you will see.

Please feel free to leave me a comment, or question and I will try to get back to you.