The beautiful malachite is found throughout Central and northern South America. However, its distribution extends as far north as southern Texas and the tip of Florida. These beautiful butterflies have black and brilliant green or yellow-green on the upperside and light brown and olive green on the underside. They get their names from the mineral malachite, which is similar in color to the butterfly.
The stunning malachite butterfly loves to feeds on flower nectar, rotting fruit, dead animals, and bat dung. They can be found in different habitats, including lowland and mid-elevation rainforests. However, they are usually seen by roadsides, riverbanks, orchards, and gardens.
Male malachite butterflies are usually seen in open sunlit areas along roads and riverbanks. At the same time, females tend to go back and forth, laying their eggs on the new leaves of plants in the family Acanthaceae, especially ruellia. Malachites are often confused with Philaethria dido butterflies because they have similar colorations, but their wings are different.
