Nymphalis polychloros, original watercolor art

The Nymphalis polychloros, or Large Tortoiseshell, is a powerful brush-footed butterfly found across Europe and North Africa. It features jagged, deep orange wings decorated with black spots and a dark, smoky border—a pattern that looks remarkably like a more intense version of its smaller cousin, the Small Tortoiseshell.

While it is a robust flyer often found patrolling woodland edges, it is also a master of disguise. When it closes its wings, the undersides are a dark, mottled brown, allowing it to blend perfectly into the bark of trees where it spends the winter in hibernation.

A fascinating fact about this butterfly is its "social" caterpillar stage. After hatching, the larvae live together in a massive communal silk web on the branches of trees like elm or willow. This "silk tent" protects the colony from predators and helps them regulate their temperature while they feed, only venturing out on their own once they are ready to pupate.

This piece is currently exhibited as part of the ENTOMOCOSMOS, mutual project of the Museum and me as an artist.

Watercolor and ink, 100% cotton ARCHES paper.

Dimensions: 31 x 41 cm | 12.2 x 16.1 in (delivered in a tube)

Can be framed upon personal request.