Electric blue gecko from Tanzania. Photos by Rhett Butler.
Following up on yesterday’s post on the spectacular blue anole from the Colombian island of Gorgona, here is a small collection of pure blue animals I’ve photographed. Birds and fish are excluded from the list since there are many blue species.
First up: the electric blue gecko from Tanzania. Also known as Williams blue day gecko, Lygodactylus williamsi is increasingly popular in the pet trade, putting it as greater risk of over collection. Unlike most other geckos, the electric blue day gecko — as betrayed by its name — is active during daylight hours.
Dendrobates azureus from Suriname.
Another unusually blue herp is Dendrobates azureus is a type of poison dart frog in the rainforests of Suriname, a country located in the northeastern part of South America. The blue poison dart frog uses its colors to warn predators of its toxicity, which is derived from its diet of ants and other small insects. Dendrobates azureus is also popular in the pet trade, but captive breeding colonies have reduced pressure on wild populations.
Blueberry poison dart frog.
Another blue frog is the the “blueberry” color form of Dendrobates pumilio, better known as the blue-jeans poison dart frog of Panama and Costa Rica. Color forms are highly variable in Dendrobates pumilio, depending on an individual’s geographic origin — some are pure red or orange, others only have blue feet, and some have blue extending up their legs.
There are many blue insects but two stunning ones are the blue morpho, a group of butterflies from Latin America, and the blue Eupholus weevils from New Guinea.
Eupholus schoenherri weevil in West Papua, Indonesian New Guinea
Blue morpho butterfly.
Blue morpho butterfly
And some other blue insects.
Blue butterfly in Madagascar
Blue beetle in New Guinea
Blue planthopper near Peñaloza in Colombia’s Choco-Darien region.
Blue and orange net-winged beetle (Lycidae) in Chicaque, Colombia.
Blue planthopper in Colombia’s Amacayacu National Park.
Blue leaf-beetle (Galerucinae subfamily) in Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo.
Blue planthopper in Sumatra’s Gunung Leuser National Park, Indonesia.
Blue planthopper in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo.
Blue ground-beetle (Lebiinae) in Sumatra’s Gunung Leuser National Park, Indonesia
Blue-eyed dragonfly in Gunung Palung National Park in West Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo.
Blue-eyed dragonfly in Brazil.
Blue-eyed dragonfly in Malaysian Borneo.
