Fiery Copper (Paralucia pyrodiscus)
Appearance: Upperside dark brown with an extended orange patch on the fore wing. The orange colour sometimes also extends across the hind wing. Underside mainly grey-brown with several dark patches and spots. Very similar to the Bright Copper (Paralucia aurifer).
Wingspan: 2.6 cm
Season: 2 generations from spring until early autumn.
Range: South-eastern and eastern Australia; from VIC through eastern NSW and the ACT into eastern QLD.
Habitat: Open forest and woodland.
Notes
The Fiery Copper can be found throughout the temperate regions of south-eastern and eastern Australia where the butterflies fly in open forests and woodland with a grassy understorey. The Fiery Copper can be easily distinguished from the similar Bright Copper (Paralucia aurifer) through the orange patch on the upperside of the hind wing which is either missing or extending across the entire hind wing in the Fiery Copper, whereas the Bright Copper always has an orange patch that covers only part of the hind wing.