Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Science/2022 July 2

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July 2[edit]

Butterfly picture ID's[edit]

Hello all, I have questions regarding several pictures of butterflies (and because they are pictures, I have no information regarding size of these species or which parts of the world they're native to): (1) For those who play Lily's Garden, what species are the three swallowtail butterflies on the first loading screen? (The yellow one on the right looks somewhat like Papilio zelicaon, and the blue one on the left just might be Papilio ulysses, but I'm not sure about either of them, and I have no clue what the green one might be, except that it's probably not Papilio palinurus.) (2) I would also like to know the species of a butterfly I recently saw on a mural -- this one is also a swallowtail, with black markings almost exactly like the aforementioned P. ulysses, but the background color is not, repeat not, electric blue but ruby red or maybe beet red. (3) And last but not least, I'd like to know about a butterfly which I saw in large numbers in a Train Simulator ad -- this one is not a swallowtail but is probably a nymphalid or lycaenid (or maybe, but less likely, a metalmark), and it has black reticulations like Danaus plexippus, but the background color is not orange but a bright blue (this one was in the ad for the Frankfurt to Koblence route pack, but I checked the list of butterflies of Germany and that list has nothing of the sort). Oh, and I am 100% positive that none, repeat none, of the above species have a tiger-striped pattern similar to that of Papilio glaucus (which is the only pattern which can scare me -- note no link to the article on this last species), so pictures are OK (as long as they're not super huge). 2601:646:8A81:6070:618C:4412:5EAA:BD36 (talk) 03:31, 2 July 2022 (UTC)[reply]

Without having seen any of these depictions, it's impossible to be sure, but I think it's very likely that few or none of these (assuming they're not photographs or videos of live specimens) are intended to be accurate depictions of actual species, merely artistic creations utilising the approximate form and appearance of swallowtail butterflies.
Butterflies in general are a popular theme in art, and in advertising, perhaps because of their associations with the natural outdoors and their supposedly carefree, random motions (an illusion, they're fighting for survival just like any other wild creature). As a sometime amateur lepidopterist, I notice butterfly depictions and have lost count of how many inaccurate, fanciful or plain imaginary renditions I've seen. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 90.195.174.88 (talk) 23:38, 2 July 2022 (UTC)[reply]
Oh, BTW, for the Lily's Garden loading screen, the yellow one that looks like P. zelicaon is on the lower left, not the right -- my mistake! (I actually tried to show you, but I couldn't upload the screenshot!) 2601:646:8A81:6070:E183:DDBB:407C:6CF8 (talk) 02:30, 3 July 2022 (UTC)[reply]
In order to upload images you must create an account. Abductive (reasoning) 23:21, 4 July 2022 (UTC)[reply]
If you can find an image online, you could also just provide a link to the image. For example, I found this image, which seems to be a loading screen for Lily's Garden, but I don't see any butterflies in it. CodeTalker (talk) 01:03, 5 July 2022 (UTC)[reply]
Unfortunately I tried and failed to find an image online -- and as for creating an account, that's one thing I will NEVER do, on account of how I have been treated on here on numerous occasions simply for being an American patriot! So what should I do -- maybe I can post my screenshot online somewhere and then link it here? 2601:646:8A81:6070:2D9D:26DC:49CB:41CC (talk) 01:09, 5 July 2022 (UTC)[reply]