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Date of Issue: 21 April 2010
Designer: Nicodemus Loh F C
PICTURE: First Day Cover, 4x pre-cancelled stamps
Butterflies belong to a group of insects known as Lepidoptera and are mostly day flying. They are most active during the warmer part of the day. Found wherever there are plants, be it in your neighbourhood garden, wildlife refuges, open grasslands or nature parks, they are notable for their unusual life cycle with a larval caterpillar stage, an inactive pupal stage, and a spectacular metamorphosis into a familiar and colourful winged adult form. The diverse patterns formed by their brightly coloured wings and their erratic yet graceful flight have made butterfly watching a fairly popular hobby.
PICTURE: Butterflies, 4x 1st local mint stamps
PICTURE: Butterflies, 4x mint stamps from the presentation pack
PICTURE: 1st local Butterflies of the stamp booklets with 10x Stamps
In this stamp issue, 4 butterflies in Singapore, namely the Blue Glassy Tiger, Common Birdwing, Common Posy and the Tailed Jay, are beautifully illustrated and featured.
PICTURE: Blue Glassy Tiger (Ideopsis vulgaris macrina)
Blue Glassy Tiger (Ideopsis vulgaris macrina) shares the same habitats with the Dark Glassy Tiger (Parantica agleoides agleoides). When these two species fly together, it is difficult to separate them, but once they stop to feed, the presence of a transverse black bar in the forewing cell identifies it as the former. Commonly found in coastal mangrove areas, the butterfly is attracted to partially dried Heliotropium indicum, usually turning up within an hour or two after this dead plant is hung in the forest reserves.
PICTURE: Common Posy (Drupadia ravindra moorei)
Common Posy (Drupadia ravindra moorei) is a relatively common forest butterfly, usually found along jungle paths near sunlit spots, has a unique habit of returning to the same leaf to rest, and usually resting with its wings closed. Main characteristics of this butterfly is that it has on the uppersides, bright blue hindwings for the males and that females have greyish white ones, while the undersides of the forewing is orange, and the distinctive black-barred hindwings distinguish it from the Branded Imperial. The butterfly has 3 tails, the middle one being the longest.
PICTURE: Common Birdwing (Troides helena cerberus)
Common Birdwing (Troides helena cerberus) is a beautiful and large butterfly belonging to the Swallow-tail (Papitionidae) family. With a wingspan of about 13 - 15cm for the males, and up to 18cm for the females, the butterfly is essentially a jungle species. It is drawn to cultivated areas where its larval food plant, Aristolochia tagala (commonly known as the Indian Birthwort), can be found. The black and yellow pattern is a warning coloration to predators that it is distasteful. This species is highly sought after by collectors and is a protected species both in Singapore and Malaysia.
PICTURE: Tailed Jay (Graphium agamemnon agamemnon)
Tailed Jay (Graphium agamemnon agamemnon), also commonly known as Green Spotted Triangle, Tailed Green Jay or the Green Triangle, is a swift-flying butterfly and is often encountered flitting from flower to flower, stopping for a second or two sipping the nectar. The upper-side of this butterfly comprises of apple-green spots, and the hindwing has a short tail, usually longer in the female. On the underside, the purple-brown ground colour has the same green spotting as well as some dark patches and red spots. It is regularly seen in gardens and urban areas due to its larval food plant, Polyalthia longifolia (Mast Tree), which is widely used as an ornamental tree.
PICTURE: 1st Local mint, available in booklet of 10x stamps
PICTURE: Front Cover of the Presentation Pack
PICTURE: Butterflies, 4x mint stamps from the presentation pack
Denominations: 1st Local, 80¢, $1.10, $2
Stamp Size: 40mm x 30rnm
Self-adhesive Stamp Booklet: 90mm x 70mm
Perforation: 14 x 14
Paper: Unwatermarked
Printing Process: Offset Lithography with MetalFX effect
Printer: Southern Colour Print
Sheet Content: 10
Designer: Nicodemus Loh F C
First Day Cover (without stamps): $0.25*
Pre-cancelled First Day Cover affixed with stamps: $5.05*
Presentation Pack: $6.05*
Self-Adhesive Stamp Booklet: $2.25*
Special Thanks to: Butterfly interest Group
PICTURE: Presentation Pack, Front & Back
Obtainable from any Post Office and Singapore Philatelic Museum
* Prices inclusive of 7% GST for purchases within Singapore
1st Local stamps can be used to make up the postage for overseas mail.
The designs were reproduced from rough visuals.
Details may be subject to change.
Visit us at our website: www.singpost.com
Purchase on-line at http://shop.vpost.com.sg
PICTURE: First Day Cover envelope butterflies picture
PICTURE: First Day Cover envelope with illustration and 4x pre-cancelled stamps
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