Despite their small size, butterflies and moths are some of the world’s most wondrous creatures. Their beauty, seemingly miraculous metamorphosis, and apparently carefree flight all spark our imagination. Perhaps the best answer that matches our current knowledge is just to say that butterflies are “fancy moths.”
Being small seems very scary, but it can also be quite useful. For you see the bugs and insects of the world can hide anywhere to be safe from birds, frogs, other sharp-eyed animals and of course from us!
Stages of a Butterfly
1. Tiny eggs are laid by the female on a leaf.
2. Around five days later, a tiny wormlike creature will hatch.
3. The caterpillar is the primary eating and growth stage of the insect.
4. The pupa or chrysalis is the resting or transformation stage, and within it the marvelous transformation from
caterpillar to adult takes place
.
5. The adult emerges from the chrysalis.
6. A butterfly or moth is emerging now. The pupa skin splits, the limp, damp butterfly crawls out now with compound eyes, a proboscis for feeding and six legs. The wings are expanded and blood is pumping into them. A little warming from the sun and it is now ready to fly off to feed and then lay its eggs.
Butterflies and moths are a group of insects called Lepidoptera. Lepidos is Greek for “scales” and ptera means “wing”. Like all insects, butterflies and moths have a head, thorax, abdomen, two antennae, and six legs. Additionally, moths and butterflies have four wings that are almost always covered by coloured scales, and a coiled proboscis for drinking liquids such as flower nectar. They taste with their feet. Their taste sensors are located in the feet and by standing on their food, they can taste it! They don’t have mouths that allow them to bite or chew. Some moths, like the Luna moth don’t have a proboscis. Their adult life-span is very short, and they do not eat. They must live on the energy they stored as caterpillars.
Butterflies and moths are found in all continents except Antarctica, and scientists estimate that there are approximately 12-15,000 species of butterflies and 150-250,000 species of moths. There are still thousands of moth and butterfly species that have not been found or described by scientists. Different butterfly species
have different adult potential life spans. It is a popular belief that butterflies have very short life spans. However, butterflies in their adult stage, can live from a week to nearly a year, depending on the species.
Some butterflies migrate each year. The most famous butterfly that migrates is the monarch.
Butterflies such as the Monarch and Pipevine Swallowtail eat poisonous plants as caterpillars and are poisonous themselves as adult butterflies. Birds learn not to eat them. No butterflies are so poisonous
that they kill people or large animals, but there is an African moth whose caterpillar’s fluids are very poisonous. The N’gwa or ‘Kaa caterpillar’s entrails have been used by Bushmen to poison the tips of arrows. When shot by one of these arrows an antelope can be killed.
Butterflies are obvious bright-coloured objects in our environment. Some are “good” because they
play an important role as pollinators. They are believed to be free spirits in their flight and lack on constraints. They are also thought of as harmless, innocent creatures, so lots of people enjoy looking at them.
Subscribe to Child Project Helper by Email
