Its range has expanded in the last few decades, and its arrival in the southern part of the Malay Peninsula, including Singapore, is relatively recent.

Forewing: anterior and apical two-thirds black, the margin of this colour waved and irregular, following a line dividing the cell longitudinally and circling round to near the posterior angle; a short, broad, oblique, white bar beyond apex of cell, the veins crossing it and a spot in interspaces 3 and 4 black; a transverse indistinct row of small spots and a terminal series of V-shaped lunules white.

Hindwing: the base and cell pale blue and red, crossed by several broken incomplete black lines, then alternate bands of white and ochraceous, two of each; the outer white band narrow and marked in each interspace with three black spots arranged as a triangle.

[1] Similar to the male in markings, but the tawny ground colour replaced by pale greenish white, somewhat brownish on the upperside of forewing, the extent of black on this wing larger.

Underside with all the markings paler than in the male the red at the base of the wings replaced by brownish yellow on the fore, white on the hindwing.