Sem comparison of morpho butterfly dorsal and ventral scales

Wavelength–selective and anisotropic light–diffusing scale on the wing of the Morpho butterfly

“…The brilliant blue wings of the Morpho species are some of the most well-known examples of structural colour (Ghiradella 1991;Parker 2000). The surprisingly minute structure hidden in their scales was first revealed by Anderson and Richards with the use of an electron microscope, and many scientific investigations have been performed to clarify the mechanisms of their coloration (Mason 1927;Anderson & Richards 1942;Bingham et al 1995;Tabata et al 1996;Vukusic et al 1999;Kinoshita et al 2002a,b). However, among many species in the Morpho genus, there still exists a great deal of variation in the tone of the blue colour, which has not been fully understood.…”

A review of the diversity and evolution of photonic structures in butterflies, incorporating the work of John Huxley (The Natural History Museum, London from 1961 to 1990)

“…(i) Total number of layers Morpho species (Morphinae: Nymphalidae) are probably the most well-known species to produce colour by means of scutes-the group having been studied exhaustively since the last century (Gentil 1942;Suffert 1942;Lippert & Gentil 1959;Bingham et al 1995;Vukusic et al 1999;Gralak et al 2001;Kinoshita et al 2002;Plattner 2004;Saito et al 2004;Berthier et al 2006). Morpho scutes show much of the variability in scute morphology and optical function, demonstrating how these structures can function as both multilayer reflectors and diffraction gratings.…”

“…(i) Total number of layers Morpho species (Morphinae: Nymphalidae) are probably the most well-known species to produce colour by means of scutes-the group having been studied exhaustively since the last century (Gentil 1942;Suffert 1942;Lippert & Gentil 1959;Bingham et al 1995;Vukusic et al 1999;Gralak et al 2001;Kinoshita et al 2002;Plattner 2004;Saito et al 2004;Berthier et al 2006).…”