100 Kina - Elizabeth II Queen Alexandra Butterfly

Papua New Guinea issued this platinum butterfly coin as part of a broader conservation series highlighting endemic species under pressure from deforestation and habitat loss in the highlands. The Queen Alexandra's Birdwing — not technically a butterfly in common parlance but the world's largest, with females reaching wingspans above 25 cm — was listed under CITES Appendix I in 1987, making commercial trade in specimens illegal. Mintages on platinum issues from Port Moresby-authorized series of this period were extremely low, typically in the dozens rather than thousands.