Doxocopa pavon

Sexually dimorphic (meaning it looks different than the opposite sex of the same species) this female Pavon Emperor butterfly was one of the many gems we discovered during our stay in Tamaulipas. The male Pavon has a brilliant metallic purple sheen on the top (dorsal) side of the wings (see our Gomez Farias, Tamaulipas, Mexico Oct-Nov 2005 gallery for an image of the male).