Tiger butterfly

From Nookipedia, the Animal Crossing wiki

Artwork of tiger butterfly
Real-world info
Name: Papilio machaon
Family: Papilionidae (Swallowtail Butterflies)
Main appearances

Other appearances
Names in other languages
 アゲハチョウ
 凤蝶
 Machaon
 Mariposa tigre
 Farfalla tigre
 Махаон
 호랑나비
 鳳蝶
 Machaon
 Mariposa tigre
 Schwalbenschwanz
 Koninginnenpage

The tiger butterfly[nb 1] is a bug in the Animal Crossing series that has appeared in every game to date. It features yellow and black-striped patterns, with a blue band on the bottom.

In the games that the tiger butterfly appears in, it is a common bug that the player can encounter, and can be found flying. In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, it can be caught from spring to the start of fall.

Catch details[edit]

In Animal Crossing[edit]

#3
Tiger butterfly
"I caught a tiger swallowtail butterfly! Those wings are beautiful!"

Time of year[nb 2] Apr – Sep
Time of day Apr, Sep:
8 AM – 4 PM
May – Aug:
8 AM – 5 PM
Location Flying
Weather Any except rain
Selling price  200 Bells
Furniture size 1.0 x 1.0


In Wild World[edit]

#3

Tiger butterfly
"I caught a tiger butterfly! The star of the butterflies!"

Description In the larval stage, they love to eat oranges. After maturation they seek out red flowers.
Time of year Mar – Sep
Time of day Mar – Jun:
4 AM – 7 PM
Jul – Aug:
8 AM – 5 PM
Sep:
8 AM – 4 PM
Peak times 8 AM – 5 PM (Mar – Jun)
Location Flying near red and pink flowers
Bug size 90 mm
Selling price  160 Bells
Furniture size 1.0 x 1.0


In City Folk[edit]

#3

Tiger butterfly
"I caught a tiger butterfly! Here, kitty, kitty!"

Description Wherever there are orange trees, these butterflies are likely to be found.
Time of year Mar – Sep
Time of day Mar – Jun:
4 AM – 7 PM
Jul – Aug:
8 AM – 5 PM
Sep:
8 AM – 4 PM
Peak times N/A
Location Flying near red and pink flowers
Bug size 90 mm
Rarity Very uncommon
Selling price  160 Bells
Furniture size 1.0 x 1.0


In New Leaf[edit]

#3

Tiger butterfly
"I caught a tiger butterfly! Looks like I pounced first!"

Time of year Mar – Sep
All year (Tortimer Island)
Time of day Mar – Jun:
4 AM – 7 PM
Jul – Aug:
8 AM – 5 PM
Sep:
8 AM – 4 PM
Tortimer Island:
8 AM – 5 PM
Peak times Mar – Jun:
8 AM – 5 PM
Location Flying near red and pink flowers (can be found on Tortimer Island)
Size 114 mm
Rarity Uncommon
Selling price  160 Bells
Furniture size 1.0 x 1.0


In Pocket Camp[edit]

The tiger butterfly is one of the seven bugs in Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp that has been in the game since its release.

#1

Tiger butterfly

Availability Currently available (since October 25, 2017)
Location Sunburst Island PC Map Icon.png Sunburst Island
Size 107.4 mm – 120.6 mm
Rarity
Selling price  10 Bells
Version added 0.9.0
Villager gift data Tier: 1 (Common)

Rewards:

  •  100 Bells
  • +2 Heart PC Icon.png Friendship points


In New Horizons[edit]

#3

Tiger butterfly
"I caught a tiger butterfly! I've earned my stripes!"

Time of year North: Mar – Sep
South: Sep – Mar
Time of day 4 AM – 7 PM
Location Flying
Weather Any except rain
Spawn requirement Appears from the start of the game
Selling prices  Nook's Cranny 240 Bells
 Flick 360 Bells
Furniture size 1.0 x 1.0


Donating to the museum[edit]

A player catches a tiger butterfly

As with all fish and bugs in the Animal Crossing series, the tiger butterfly can be donated to the museum by talking to Blathers, who will also tell the player a little bit about the donation. Regarding the tiger butterfly:

In Animal Crossing[edit]

"There's an old saying among some of my contemporaries: "Butterflies are beautiful, yet moths are monstrous." Well, if you were to ask me, I'd say they were all the same! By which I mean disgusting! Truly hoo-rrific, wot wot!"

In Wild World[edit]

"Tiger butterflies are named due to their distinctive tiger-like markings... I must say, I'd almost rather encounter a real tiger than one of these. Real tigers are nowhere near as... wretched."

The tiger butterfly can be found hovering around the flowers in the first room of the insect exhibit after donation.

In City Folk[edit]

"Aside from the south pole, one can find tiger butterflies just about anywhere on earth. Imagine these monstrous bugs flapping about the whole globe... The very thought robs me of sleep!"

The tiger butterfly can be found fluttering around the flowers on the lower tier of the insect room after donation.

In New Leaf[edit]

The tiger butterfly flying around in the museum in Animal Crossing: New Leaf

Upon being donated, the butterfly can be found in the first room of the bug exhibit resting on flowers with the other butterflies. The exhibit has this to say about the tiger butterfly:

"The larvae of tiger butterflies feed on leaves of orange trees until the metamorphose. When they're threatened, they emit a foul smell from their antennae to protect themselves. The dusting you see on your fingers whenever you touch their wings is actually from their scales. These scales form the wing pattern as well as repel rainwater, making them very important for survival."

In New Horizons[edit]

"Tiger butterflies are known for their majestic wings, which many consider quite beautiful. Truth be told, I find them monstrous! Those strange striped patterns... They give this owl the goose bumps! And while you may imagine young tiger butterfly larvae to look like lovely green caterpillars...it's not so! Why, when tiger butterflies are but babes, they're covered in unsightly white, brown, and black spots. In this way, they camouflage themselves as...as...bird droppings! Putrid pests, indeed!"

The tiger butterfly can be found in the butterfly room, but may also be spotted flying around the big bug room as well.

Gallery[edit]

Real-world information[edit]

Papilio machaon, the Old World swallowtail, is a widespread species across both Eurasia and North America. There are over 40 subspecies which vary in size and color. The appearance of the butterfly in the Animal Crossing series is that of males, who have darker markings.

The games' name of "tiger butterfly" is a misnomer and may derive from the common name of Papilio glaucus, the eastern tiger swallowtail, which can be similar in color. While the in-game Japanese name is ambiguous, merely referring to swallowtails as a whole, the French, Dutch and Russian localizations correctly identify the swallowtail as P. machaon.

Etymology[edit]

Papilio is the Latin word for butterfly. The specific name machaon comes from the Greek mythological figure Machaon.

Names in other languages[edit]

Japanese アゲハチョウ
Ageha chou
Swallowtail butterfly

Korean 호랑나비
Horangnabi
Swallowtail butterfly

Simplified Chinese 凤蝶
Fèngdié
Swallowtail butterfly

Traditional Chinese 鳳蝶
Unknown

Russian Махаон
Makhaon
Swallowtail; part of Latin name

Dutch Koninginnenpage Swallowtail

German Schwalbenschwanz Swallowtail

European Spanish Mariposa tigre Same as in English.

European French Machaon Swallowtail; part of Latin name

Italian Farfalla tigre Tiger butterfly

Notes[edit]

  1. Japanese: アゲハチョウ Hepburn: Ageha chou
  2. All bugs and fish in the first-generation games can appear at a lower spawn rate up to five days before the start of their first month of availability.