Butterflies of Gua Tempurung @ Kampar Part 1

CH and I went on a butterfly-shooting trip at Kampar  from 11-16 June. We travelled  by air this time (Firefly flight to Ipoh). It cost us RM60 to hire a cab taking us from Ipoh airport to The Grand Kampar Hotel. Upon our request, a friendly hotel counter helped us arranging with uncle Lai who became our "chauffeur " bringing us to Gua Tempurung and back to hotel at RM25 per trip.  

Let me begin to showcase some of the butterfly shots that I have photographed over a total of  two days at this popular caving site. 

You would never miss the magnificent flight and colour of a male Raja Brook's Birdwing (RBB) (Trogonoptera brookiana albescens ) especially when there were a few of them fluttering around. I was lucky to snap a few close range shots of a RBB resting on a leaf.

We usually encountered a few male RBBs puddling on a dirty and damp soil. Here is a shot of one of them .  

A single female RRB was feeding on a large hibiscus flower on Day 2 (12 June) morning. Flapping with a   high speed while feeding, she was too fast for me to  get any better shot than these two attempts .

A round of rapid firing produced a lucky but blur upperside shot.  

Another large and prominent butterfly fluttering around on two afternoons was the Malayan Birdwing (Troides amphrysus ruficollis). At least two individuals were loitering in the air and occasionally feeding on the red hibiscus flowers also. Getting a good shot of this female was also very tough as she never stayed still while feeding on the nectar.   

Here is another shot taken on Day 3 late afternoon.

In fact Common Birdwing (Troides helena cerberus) which is smaller in size in general, was also fluttering around in the late afternoon.  

We saw a Banded Peacock (Papilio palinurus palinurus) flew past us on Day 2 and I was lucky to spot it resting on a leaf high on a tree on Day 3 afternoon. But what a pity that I could not get an unobstructed view of  this magnificent butterfly. 

There were at least two Tailed Jays (Graphium agamemnon agamemnon) puddling together with the RBBs. This individual must have had enough nutrient solutions that it decided to rest and sunbathe in the late afternoon sun. 

This is a Common Jay (Graphium doson evemonides) perching on a leaf for a short rest in a very hot afternoon. 

An example of mimicry, Lesser Zebra (Pathysa macareus perakensis) looks rather similar to the distasteful Glassy Tiger butterfly species. But it actually belongs to the Swallowtail family.    

Some Red Helens (Papilio helenus helenus) were found puddling but I couldn't get a decent shot of it. Instead, this fellow was found feeding on some flowers behind the toilet. 

I will show other butterfly species in my next few posts. To be continued.