Purple emperor

About

The Purple emperor is one of the most spectacular butterflies in our forests. Wingspan is 6–8 cm. The wings are dark brown with white spots and a white band on the hindwings, with an eye spot in an orange ring near the hind corner. The male's scales refract light, so at a certain angle, the wings suddenly flash blue-purple. The female is larger and lacks this sheen.

Butterflies fly from late June to August, with one generation. They spend most of their time in the treetops, making them difficult to see. The Purple emperor does not visit flowers. Males descend to forest roads in the morning: they drink from puddles and moist soil, land on animal droppings, and even on sweaty backpacks. It is easiest to encounter them on dirt roads in deciduous forests.

In the Carpathians, the species lives in deciduous and mixed forests of the valleys and lower mountain belt, primarily along rivers and streams where goat willow grows—the main food plant for the caterpillars. The caterpillar is green, with two 'horns' on its head, and overwinters on a branch.

The similar Lesser purple emperor has another dark eye spot on the forewing in a reddish ring, and the white band on the hindwing lacks a sharp tooth.

The species is listed in the Red Data Book of Ukraine (vulnerable). Catching butterflies is prohibited. It is harmed by the logging of riparian forests and the destruction of willows on forest edges. Distribution on the website is shown only at the level of massifs.

Where in the Carpathians

Orange — where naturalists recorded the species (GBIF, CC0/CC BY). It occurs only locally, so we draw no approximate range; a blank area does not mean it is absent. For rare and vulnerable species the map is deliberately coarse (hexagons of ~250 km² or more) so that it never points to dens, nests or growing sites.

Countries

Ukraine · Romania · Hungary · Slovakia · Poland · Serbia · Austria

Mountain ranges

Gorgany, Pokuttia-Bukovina Carpathians, Chornohora, Maramureș Mountains, Vihorlat-Gutin Volcanic Ridge, Krasna Polonyna. In other countries: 🇭🇺 Mátra, 🇷🇴 Bihor-Vlădeasa Mountains, 🇭🇺 Bükk, 🇸🇰 High Tatras, 🇷🇴 Mehedinți and Cerna Mountains, 🇭🇺 Börzsöny and Cserhát, 🇷🇴 Făgăraș Mountains, 🇭🇺 Zemplén Mountains

Altitude belts

Foothills (below 600 m) · Beech forests (600–1200 m)

When to see it

From naturalists’ observations in the Carpathians (iNaturalist, research grade): the darker the cell, the more often the species is seen that month.

Protection and rules

Listed in the Red Data Book of Ukraine (vulnerable). Catching and collecting is prohibited.

Red Data Book of Ukraine

FAQ