Seasonal polyphenism is a
common phenomenon observed among members of the Lepidopteran subfamily
Satyrinae. Melanitis leda,
being a member of that subfamily, exhibits seasonal variation in terms of wing
patterning. In butterflies, wing patterning is due to the nanostructural
architecture of the scales, which reflects and refracts incident light, with or without the combination of
pigments. The current scanning electron, fluorescence and optical microscope
study divulge fine structural and signal changes that occur with different
season in the scales of M. leda and give rise to the different wing
pattern in butterfly. The structural and consequent signal changes are likely
to be correlated with behavioural processes such as mate selection and escape
from predation.
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