Australian Capital Territory
Canberra & Southern Tablelands
New South Wales
Canberra & Southern Tablelands
Description
The Purple Copper Butterfly is a small butterfly with a thick body and a wingspan of only 20–30 mm. The upper sides of its wings are purple, black or deep brown, with a bronze or green iridescence in sunlight. The undersides of its wings are patterned with subtle brown, black and grey. Its black antennae are dotted with white spots and have a black tip.
Butterflies can emerge from late August through to early November and they usually fly between 10 am and 2 pm on warm sunny days with little or no wind.
Adult males fly rapidly at about one metre from the ground and rest in the sun with their wings parted. Females fly less rapidly and tend to stay closer to the host plant, a native blackthorn shrub, on which they lay their eggs. Typical behaviours include territorial chasing and spiralling courtship chases, with one female being pursued by several males. They also like to perch in the sun and feed on nearby flowers.
Caterpillars grow to about 22 mm in length and are light green with darker longitudinal markings. They are nocturnal and can be found crawling along the blackthorn stems and feeding on the leaves from 10 pm to 5 am between November and January. They will be attended by between one and 15 ants, with other ants patrolling a line between the feeding caterpillar and the ant nest at the base of the plant. Ants also roam around the host plant and will attack other insects.
Distribution & habitat
The Purple Copper Butterfly is found in the area bordered by Bathurst, Portland, Lithgow and Oberon in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales, with an outlying population at Mount David. It is also likely to occur in new areas yet to be discovered across New South Wales. It is one of Australia’s rarest butterfly species.
The following features are common to known sites:
The Purple Copper Butterfly lives in open woodland or open forest with a sparse understorey that is dominated by the shrub native blackthorn – Bursaria spinosa subsp. lasiophylla. Native blackthorn is an erect, spindly, often multi-stemmed shrub that generally grows to approximately 2 metres tall. It has spines along the primary branches and the dark green foliage is sometimes sparse.
Life cycle
The butterfly’s life cycle relies on a ‘mutualistic’ relationship with the ant (Anonychomyrma itinerans) and the presence of native blackthorn. After mating, the female lays her eggs on or near blackthorn bushes, at the base of which there are nests of the attendant ants. During the 14 to 17 days the caterpillars take to hatch, the attendant ants constantly patrol the blackthorn. When the larvae hatch, they are immediately tended by ants.
As the caterpillars grow, the ants move them underground into their nest during the day and out at night to continue grazing on the native blackthorn leaves. The ants’ efforts are rewarded with a sugary honeydew from a gland on the caterpillar’s back. Pupation (the transformation from caterpillar to butterfly) occurs between December and August within the underground ants' nest.
For tips to help with your search and observations to take note of, visit the NatureMapr Collection 'Counting Coppers: join the search for the Purple Copper Butterfly' [https://naturemapr.org/collections/sightings/44788]
Credit: text above is from the NSW DCCEEW fact page Purple Copper Butterfly 2025 [https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/topics/animals-and-plants/native-animals/native-animal-facts/invertebrates/purple-copper-butterfly]
Paralucia spinifera is listed in the following regions:
