The common map butterfly, known locally as mahi simanta, was found near Madhabkunda waterfall in Moulvibazar.
Wildlife specialist A.N.M. Aminur Rahman told Prothom Alo that he photographed the rare butterfly Cyrestis thyodamas after searching for it for more than a decade. In Bangladesh it is known as mahi simanta, and in English as the common map or mapwing.
Rahman first encountered the butterfly at Madhabkunda in December 2023. It appeared around noon after a foggy morning but flew away before he could take a photograph. He returned in November 2025 and, with help from a guide and a local companion, finally photographed it near the waterfall.
During the same outing, the group recorded 15 butterfly species, 12 bird species and two squirrel species. Rahman describes the butterfly’s fine wing markings as resembling lines on a map. Its wingspan is about 50 to 60 millimetres.
The species lives in cool, humid and shaded forest, including areas near waterfalls, streams and forest paths in Bangladesh’s Sylhet and Chattogram divisions. Females lay eggs on leaves of fig and other related trees. According to Rahman, development from egg to adult takes about six to ten weeks, depending on temperature and climate.