Rothschild's birdwing

Rothschild's birdwing, Ornithoptera rothschildi, is a large birdwing butterfly endemic to the Arfak Mountains in Western New Guinea. It was first recognised by the entomologist Charles Edgar Pratt and described by George Kenrick in 1911, and it is named for Lord Walter Rothschild, who financed the collecting expeditions of Pratt and his sons to New Guinea. Females can reach a wingspan of about 15 centimetres and males about 13 centimetres. The forewings are dark brown with creamy or greyish spots, and the male hindwing has a yellow central patch with black tips beside smaller lime green spots. It has the most restricted range of any birdwing, living in flowering meadows between 2,000 and 2,700 metres above sea level. A butterfly once described as Ornithoptera akakeae is thought to be a natural hybrid between this species and Ornithoptera priamus poseidon.