Ceylon treebrown- Butterflies of Sri lanka

    Scientific Name – lethe daretis
Family – Nymphalidae
The wingspan of the Treebrown is about 50-60 mm. There seems to be significant differences between the male and the female. The male is a medium-sized, mostly dark brown butterfly having a series of dark sub-marginal spots on the hind wing. The underside is lighter with more vivid markings. It can be distinguished from all other similar looking species by the eye-spots on the underside of the hind wing. There are six eye-spots which are similar in size, shape and color pattern. The eye-spots are smaller of the male and the yellow band is absent. The female is larger and less brighter than the male. The undersides are similar in both sexes. The upper side of the female has a yellow band across the center of the forewing and a well-defined set of large eye-spots on the hind wing. It has a series of white streaks that form a diagonal line from the post discal area of the fore wing and a series of large spots faintly outlined in white on the hind wing.