This is the Eueides isabella dianassa, belonging to the Nymphalidae family, subfamily Heliconiinae. This species flies all year round, however is often seen on the drier months of winter.
This species has a short life cycle, about 2-3 months and often remains close to the host plant (passion fruit/passifloras) where larvae feed on their leaves. The female is slightly larger than the male and lays isolated eggs on the underside of the leaves. The larvae, known as caterpillars, feed on leaves by scraping the lower surface while they are small.

Eventually when they become larger, they gnaw the edges of the leaves. When they reach the fifth age (after changing ‘skin’ 4 times to continue growing after stretching) instead of changing the skin, they abandon the plant and look for other sheltered places (walls, windows, dry wood or tree trunks) where the pupa or chrysalis is formed, staying another 4 to 6 weeks until the adult butterfly emerges.

On a sunny winter afternoon, mating was recorded. The males performed an “8” shaped movement around the female releasing pheromones. The female, already receptive, had her motionless abdomen waiting for the male. There were 3 males flying around the female, but in this case, the female only chose one to mate.