Most of us love to see colorful butterflies fluttering in our garden. From tiny blue butterflies to giant phoenix butterflies, each has its own beauty. But how much do you really know about this insect? Let's take a look at Toplist interesting things about butterflies now!
1: The color of a butterfly is made up of thousands of tiny scales
Butterflies are small, flying, diurnal insects belonging to the order Lepidoptera. They often live near flowering bushes to suck pollen, nectar, and help pollinate flowers. Day butterflies are sometimes referred to as butterflies or butterflies, although butterflies can refer to moths (throne).
The color of butterflies is made up of thousands of tiny, stacked scales. Sometimes it is also colored particles, but in general cases the surface that produces these scales can refract light, so the butterfly's wings have a constantly changing color, sparkling as they move. Often the bottom is gray or brown which is a far cry from the colorful top. These ugly colors will serve as camouflage when its wings are folded. This will keep it out of the eyes of other birds and vermin.
Each butterfly has 4 wings but acts as a pair. Butterflies beat their wings relatively slowly (about 20 times per minute). However, many butterflies can fly very fast and powerfully. There are even small species that can fly long distances when migrating. For example, the Comma butterfly can fly from the middle of the Sahara Desert to England, a distance of 2,000 miles in 14 days. Monarch butterflies migrate annually from California to Canada and accidentally fly across the Atlantic Ocean.
The color of butterflies is made up of thousands of tiny scales
2: The process of worms turning into butterflies
The process of cocoon "molting" into a butterfly is long and arduous. But in return, when the butterfly emerges from the pupa and spreads its beautiful wings, the hardships endured before may have paid off.
The life cycle of a butterfly begins at the egg stage. Butterflies often lay eggs on the leaves of plants that are their favorite food. Eggs are very small and come in many different shapes but are mostly spherical. Butterflies often lay their eggs on the leaves of the plants they normally eat. Butterfly eggs are very small and come in many different shapes but are mostly spherical.
This in-egg phase lasts several weeks until the eggs hatch into larvae (caterpillars). The caterpillar's first meal is its eggshell. After 2-3 weeks of eating and drinking, the larger caterpillar will release silk into a mass we call a cocoon, it lets the body inside, escapes and turns into a pupate.
The mucus layer is like a special glue that helps the pupa stay in place. The color of the protective sheath resembles a withered leaf, giving them the best camouflage. At this time, the pupae still rely on a bar of spines in the tail to adhere to the cocoon shell and prepare for the exit process. After more than 2 weeks, the butterfly inside rubs its back against the cocoon to form a small hole to get out.
Butterflies that have just escaped from the cocoon cannot fly right away because their wings are not dry and strong. After about an hour, the butterfly's wings are full-sized, dry and ready to fly.
The process of worms turning into butterflies
3: What do butterflies eat to live?
Butterflies are insects that hide many interesting things in their life cycle. The process of growth and development of butterflies is a closed cycle: Egg - Larva - Caterpillar - Pupa (pupa that creates cocoon) - Butterfly. Adult butterflies can live from 1 week to almost 1 year. They mate, lay eggs and start a new life cycle.
The larvae of butterflies eat eggshells immediately after hatching, caterpillars eat leaves to live, pupae do not eat anything, and butterflies often use long proboscis to suck nectar from flowers to live.
The truth is so simple that everyone knows, but in fact, many butterflies not only suck nectar but also eat dead bodies, mud or animal waste. Sometimes human sweat and tears of turtles and crocodiles are also the favorite food of butterflies. They suck the liquid inside those things because it contains sodium which increases the fertility of butterflies.
So, if a butterfly lands on you, don't think that you smell so good that it attracts the attention of butterflies. And don't be surprised to see a swarm of butterflies flocking to a dead animal or even a dunghill.
A butterfly cannot live on nectar, it also needs minerals. So butterflies often "sniff" in muddy puddles rich in minerals and salts. This behavior, known as "puddling," is especially common in male butterflies. Their bodies synthesize minerals into sperm. These nutrients are then transferred to the female butterfly during mating, and help the egg's viability for longer.
What do butterflies eat to live?
3:Butterflies have terrible eating habits
Possessing a beautiful and lovely appearance, butterflies have a strange taste in eating, making many people nauseous. The nectar cannot provide enough nutrients for butterflies, so they have many bizarre eating habits, such as landing on the ground and enjoying the mud – a mixture that provides amino acids, proteins, salts, and proteins. that they need.
Sweat and tears of humans, turtles and crocodiles are also favorite foods of butterflies because it contains sodium which increases sperm count and increases fertility. Butterflies don't pierce the skin like mosquitoes do, so they don't bite people. However, if there is blood, butterflies will not hesitate to drink this terrible drink to replenish iron and sugar.
In addition, butterflies love urine so much that they even consume their own urine. It's hard to believe, but waste is certainly one of the favorite foods of beautiful butterflies. Similar to mud, manure provides them with minerals, amino acids, and nitrogen.
With no teeth, butterflies love to enjoy rotting meat that is in the process of liquefaction. These monstrous dishes of butterflies will most likely make you shiver as you gaze at a magnificent butterfly.
Butterflies have terrible eating habits
4:Butterflies taste flavors with their feet
Butterflies can taste their food, but not through their mouths. Instead, the butterfly's taste buds are in the butterfly's feet! An animal's paws serving as taste organs sounds absurd, which is probably why researchers never even considered the possibility.
Most early research in this area looked at the antennae or palpi, part of the butterfly's mouth, as the primary taste organ. The thinking is that if humans and most other mammals have tongues for taste, a similar organ must serve the same function in insects.
Nature rarely works in a straightforward and predictable way. It was only in the late 1800s that researchers began to take a more out-of-the-box approach to the problem. This is when they discovered that it was the legs, not the mouth, that functioned as taste receptors in butterflies!
Taste buds are referred to as contact chemoreceptors, taste receptors, or basal sense in some literature. These chemicals are attached to nerve endings. When the chemicals present in the insect's surroundings come into contact with the chemicals, they activate nerves, which transmit information to the insect's brain.
In butterflies, these chemicals are located on the tarsus. Insect legs are divided into different segments, as the figure below shows. The tarsus is located distal, that is, away from the body. Just as humans can taste the sweetness of sugar and the bitterness of medicine, insects can also perceive flavors differently! They can perceive sweet, bitter, sour and salty tastes through chemicals.
Butterflies taste with their feet
5: How butterflies receive food
Butterflies have haustellate mouths. They can't actually chew or bite food, so they only drink liquids in the form of nectar, tree sap, fruit juices, and some minerals.
Haustellate mouthparts are an adaptation from the mouths used for chewing, known as the Mandibulation mouth. All primitive insects had obligate mouths, because they had large mandibles to crush their food. As insects develop, they develop different types of mouths to adapt to their environment and dietary needs.
New butterflies often curl up and unscrew their proboscis to test it. When the hose is not in use, it stays curled up, like a garden hose. Butterflies mainly feed on nectar or pollen. They perch on the flower, unscrew their proboscis and suck the delicious juice, but that's not the only thing they eat.
Butterflies show a special relationship with mud. This behavior, known as puddles or puddles, is mostly seen in male butterflies, mainly in tropical regions, although it also occurs in more temperate regions.
Male butterflies congregate in puddles because it's an excellent source of minerals essential for healthy sperm. These nutrients are transferred to the female during mating and help improve egg viability.One particularly valuable mineral is sodium. Because plant nectar is deficient in sodium, many insects on a plant-based diet are regularly starved for sodium. This is why many butterflies are attracted to sweat, droppings or even carrion. Also, any body of water near puddles can allow butterflies to cool down in hot, dry weather.
If you were sitting in a park or garden on a sunny day and a butterfly happened to land on you, many people would take it as a compliment and a sweet little wish, but in truth, the butterfly is probably just attracted by salt and sweat on your skin!
How butterflies receive food
6: A newly hatched adult butterfly has no proboscis
Unlike caterpillars that destroy leaves, adult butterflies only feed on liquids, usually nectar. The mouth part is modified to allow them to drink bile, but cannot chew. With a spout at the mouth part, which functions as a water intake, they straighten out when sucking in nectar and curl back when not in use.
Some butterflies eat tree sap, and some even "cup" the decomposing plants.
Newly hatched adults do not have suckers. A butterfly that cannot drink nectar will surely die. The adult butterfly does not have a sucker, at this point its mouth is divided into 2 parts.
One of the first jobs of newly hatched butterflies is to ask for help from fellow butterflies. The adult butterfly will approach it and begin working with these two discrete parts to form a single tube, which will absorb water. You can easily see butterflies helping each other in the garden.
Newly hatched adult butterflies have no proboscis
7: Butterflies also have venom
Like many other species living on Earth, butterflies also have a dark side in life, and they have lived a hidden life that people are barely aware of. The first thing that can be mentioned is the color of the butterflies. Good looks can actually be a warning.
An example is the long-winged striped butterfly Heliconius charithonia. At a glance, this species is as "innocent" as many other butterflies, but they are famously poisonous. Even at the stage of caterpillars, they also have a habit of "eating" their brothers, leading to a brotherhood of a mutual family.
And yet, butterflies also have a cruel behavior that scientists often call the term "pupation rape".
When a female is about to emerge from her pupa to become a butterfly and take flight, a group of males surround the female, shoving and flapping their wings like rivals to win a mate. The winner of this brawl gets to mate with the female. But the males are often so excited that before the female can get out, they use the "weapon" to tear off the pupa to mate.
Since the female is trapped in the pupa and has no other choice, the term "puppy rape" arose. Some biologists call it "forced intercourse".
In terms of cunning and cunning, perhaps the butterfly family members are calling the species Maculinea rebeli. The caterpillars Maculinea rebeli even tricked the ants to be served as a king and queen. Caterpillars can make sounds that mimic the queen ant and cause the entire colony to trick and serve it. Cook ants bring water to them, and nurse ants sometimes sacrifice ants to feed them when food is scarce.
Butterflies also have venom
8: Butterflies listen with their wings
As we all know, some types of butterflies hear with small holes in the base of their wings. These holes are covered by a thin membrane, which functions like the eardrum in humans. But the team led by Dr Jayne Yack, a professor and neuroscientist in the Department of Biology at Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario, has found that at least some types of butterflies hear using the structures themselves. on their wings.
The study was published October 17, 2018, in the journal Biology Letters. They found that the butterfly family (more than 2,500 different species of butterflies with common species like monarch butterflies) have very strange veins on their wings that help them hear. Butterfly wings have air-filled vessels that help stabilize and hold the wings. This is also a distinguishing feature of the butterfly family. Yack and her colleagues hypothesized that these bulging vessels are related to hearing function because they both lead to the auricular foramen in the pterygium.
The researchers played out sounds with frequencies similar to those of a human voice, and recorded the butterfly's wing activity with a laser. The bulging vessels of the 30 armored butterflies all responded to sound. When a small incision is made in these bulging vessels, their ability to hear is impeded. So it's clear that this structure on the wing has a role in the butterfly's ability to hear.
Researchers aren't sure how these particular hearing devices work. Maybe they help this group of butterflies regulate low-frequency sounds.
Butterflies listen with their wings
9:Raindrops have great damage to butterflies
On average, a monarch butterfly weighs 500mg, large raindrops weigh about 70mg or more. So raindrops have great damage to butterflies. Moreover, when it's sunny, butterflies will spread their wings - this helps them absorb heat, thereby having enough energy to fly.
When it rains, their ability to fly is limited, making it easy to prey on predators such as birds and other insects. On the other hand, strong gusts of wind are also an unpredictable danger.
All of the above reasons explain why we rarely see butterflies flying in rainstorms. Instead, they will close their wings, seeking safe shelter. It is under foliage, branches, debris, cracks in rocks, tall grass or even human fences.
In areas where there are storms in winter, survival conditions are harsher. Because the closer to the ground, the lower the temperature, so the butterfly has to try to fly to the high branches. In addition, around the stem will give off heat to keep the butterfly warm.
Living close to nature, the Zuni aborigines in Mexico used to say: "When you see white butterflies flying to the southwest, it means heavy rain is coming". Indeed, butterflies will find shelter when it wants to rain and stay there for hours. Through the rain, the sky is bright again, butterflies immediately flock to each other to flirt, creating an extremely beautiful scene that makes paparazzi or nature lovers overwhelmed!
Raindrops have great damage to butterflies.
11:Butterflies can't fly if the weather is cold
Butterflies need an ideal temperature of about 85ºF (29ºC) to fly.
Since butterflies are cold-blooded animals, they cannot regulate their own body temperature. Ambient air temperature greatly affects their ability to function. If the air temperature is below 55ºF (13ºC), the butterfly becomes immobile, unable to run away from predators or find food.
When the air temperature ranges from 82º-100ºF (27ºC – 38ºC), butterflies can fly easily. On cooler days, the butterfly needs to make its body by flying slowly. When the temperature reaches 38ºC, butterflies also have difficulty because of the heat and find a cool place to hide.
Newly mature butterflies cannot fly. Inside the cocoon, the developing butterfly waits for the moment to come out of its shell. Once out of its pupa, it greets the world with its tiny withered wings.
Butterflies must immediately pump fluid into their bodies through veins in their wings to expand them. Once its wings reach full size, the butterfly must rest for several hours to dry out and harden before it can take its first flight.
Butterflies can't fly if the weather is cold
12:Butterflies use many tricks to survive
The butterfly only lives for a few weeks, once it emerges from the cocoon and matures into an adult, the butterfly only has a short 2-4 weeks to live, which is characteristic of most butterflies. During that time, it focuses all of its energy on two tasks – eating and mating. Tiny blues butterflies only live a few days, but monarch butterflies live up to 9 months.
Butterflies rank quite low in the food chain of carnivores. To survive in the dangerous natural world, butterflies use a number of tricks to stay alive.
Some butterflies double their wings to blend in with the environment, tricking the eyes of predators. Others try the opposite strategy, using their vibrant colors to declare its presence. Brightly colored insects are often poisonous if ingested by animals, so predators learn to avoid them.
Some butterflies, which are not toxic at all, still manage to appear aggressive, and this tactic worked when the predator left on suspicion of being poisonous.
Butterflies use many tricks to survive
13:Butterflies are nearsighted
In the range of 10-12 feet (3 meters - 3.2 meters), the eye can see butterflies quite well. Anything beyond that distance will be slightly blurred to the butterfly's eyes. Butterflies rely on their eyesight to do important tasks, like finding mates and finding nectar.
In addition to seeing some of the colors we can see, butterflies can see a wide range of ultraviolet colors invisible to the human eye. The butterflies themselves have UV markings on their wings that help them identify each other and find potential friends. The flowers also emit ultraviolet signals to signal to pollinators like butterflies – “pollinate me!”
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14: Moths have monstrous defenses
To counter their arch-enemies, moths have developed an unusual defense mechanism: using their genitals to send out ultrasonic waves.
In the dark caves and dense forests of the world, a long and dramatic evolutionary war lasting 65 million years is raging between bats and moths. Obviously moths are weak, but scientists have just learned that this species has found ingenious ways to fight off the powerful weapons of its enemies.
The latest discovery is that large moths are capable of jamming the navigation signals that bats use in long-term chases in the dark. When chased by bats, they rub their genitals against their abdomens to create ultrasonic waves, which interfere with the enemy's ability to determine the direction. To draw the above conclusion, the team of experts turned on the bat's signal and aimed at the objects that are many species of moths. In it, 3 species of moth, including Cechenena lineosa, Theretra boisduvalii and Theretra nessus, began to emit ultrasonic waves.
Before that, the tiger butterfly was the only known species capable of jamming bats. Now, researchers have found that both the large moth and the tiger moth possess ears that detect bats' positioning waves, and have the ability to respond by replaying the same waveform. The difference here is that the large moth's ears are on the face, and the tiger butterfly's ears are on the chest. And the tiger butterfly also sends out ultrasound signals using membranes in the chest area.
Moths have monstrous defenses
15: Migration habits of butterflies
The study found that for millions of years, butterflies still make the long migratory journey from Canada in the north to Mexico in the south to winter, a few generations later have their own migration. migrate back in the summer. This is the result of a mysterious analysis of 101 genetic samples collected from this insect around the world.
These analyzes have renewed understanding of the history of migratory butterflies with this distinctive bright orange and black color combination because many scientists previously thought that the migration phenomenon appeared only recently. These misunderstandings stem from the fact that most members of the butterfly family that breed outside of North America are tropical, non-migratory species, so scientists have always thought that their ancestors were too. and only began to migrate from the 19th century.
The results of research by scientists based on pedigree genetics show that this migratory butterfly is descended from migratory butterflies that appeared more than 2 million years ago. They also found that the butterfly's ability to migrate is linked to a single gene morphology that regulates the formation and function of the muscles on their wings.
In 1996, billions of these insects completed the north-south route, but last year the number dropped to only 35 million. This decline is thought to be the result of deforestation, drought conditions and the use of pesticides on milkweed, the main food and place for butterflies to lay their eggs. Scientists hope the results of the study will suggest ways to preserve migratory habits for butterflies.
Migration habits of butterflies
16:Threats of butterflies in the wild
Anyway, the fate of butterflies is also very fragile. Like in the winter of 2016, an unusually large storm swept through Mexico's El Rosario nature reserve, killing 40% of butterflies. One of the reasons for such mass mortality of butterflies is the thinning of forest canopy. In fact, the forest canopy plays two extremely important roles for the creatures living below.
According to the American Journal of Entomology, the forest is both a "heat blanket" and an "rain umbrella" that helps butterflies and other animals stay wet and cold.
Butterflies are small insects, specializing in sucking pollen and nectar, helping to pollinate flowers. On the contrary, flowers and plants are also "dome" to protect butterflies from harsh nature. But when human hands began to renovate nature more, everything changed. The beauty of butterflies makes them hunted, keeping their bodies for collections. Natural forests are destroyed, changing the living environment of species.
Many butterfly species around the world from South America, Southeast Asia, Australia to Europe are in danger of extinction. Some species are protected by law, some are raised on farms, other measures are also being enacted. Hopefully it's not too late to save this insect.
Threats of butterflies in the wild
Top 17 rarest butterfly species in the world
These butterflies with fancy patterns used to appear quite a lot. However, the living environment and human impacts have made them gradually disappear.
Miami Blue: In the past, this species was quite common along the coast of Florida (USA). Today, however, its numbers have decreased significantly (estimated to less than 100 individuals). This is the rarest butterfly in the world. The main cause of the disappearance of the Miami Blue butterfly was coastal development in Miami and Hurricane Andrew in 1992. Until 1999, no one had seen the Miami Blue butterfly and it was thought to be extinct.
Island Marble: This butterfly has a wing pattern identical to marble. For about 100 years (1908-1998), it was thought to be extinct. However, some Island Marble butterflies have reappeared on San Juan Island (Spain). Scientists and authorities have put it on the endangered animal list. However, their efforts have not been able to stop the number of this species from decreasing. By 2018, the number of Island Marble butterflies was less than 200 in San Juan.
Palos Verdes Blue: This is a small endangered butterfly. Palos Verdes Blue only appears on the Palos Verdes peninsula (USA), so few people can see it with their own eyes. Scientists think this species has completely disappeared in 1983 when its habitat (in Rancho Palos Verdes Park) was razed. Currently, there are only about 200 individuals of Palos Verdes Blue left in the wild.
Lange's Metalmark: Like Palos Verdes Blue, Lange's Metalmark lives only in one environment. It is the Antioch dune area (California, USA). It became officially endangered in 1976.
Saint Francis Satyr: This butterfly only appears in Fort Bragg in North Carolina (USA). It is estimated that the number of Saint Francis Satyr individuals is now less than 1,000. The main cause of this butterfly's disappearance is threatened habitat.
Schaus Swallowtail: At one point, Schaus Swallowtail was considered the rarest butterfly in Florida (USA) with only a few hundred left. However, conservation efforts have caused the current number of butterflies to fluctuate between 800-1,200 individuals. Their distinguishing feature is that the upper wing is dark brown with a white, yellow stripe in the middle. Their wingspan is about 9.2-11.8cm long.
Leona's Little Blue: Its name is named after Leona Rice - who first discovered this species in Klamath, Oregon (USA). The current estimated population of Leona's Little Blues is about 1,000 - 2,000. They live mainly on buckwheat trees. However, their "home" is being compromised due to logging and a number of other invasive plant species.
Top 7 rarest butterflies in the world
18: Harmful butterflies and how to prevent diseases caused by butterflies
In fact, butterflies or caterpillars themselves are not poisonous and do not directly attack humans. However, their outer coat is covered with a dense powdery coat, which for delicate and sensitive skin will be severely allergic if it is touched with butterfly powder.
In some severe cases that can occur is dermatitis caused by insects, the skin will be red, blisters, itchy, burning, ... This symptom is relatively easy to treat, just apply the cream on the skin. also over. The second disease that can be acquired from inhaling butterfly pollen is asthma. This case happens a lot in young children, so parents need to pay attention to protect their children against this seemingly gentle and harmless creature.
As mentioned, butterflies do not directly attack humans, so it is not necessary for us to destroy butterflies as harshly as other harmful insects. But just avoid direct and regular contact with them is safe. For young children, parents need to limit their children's play in areas with dense bushes or stagnant ponds. In this place, not only butterflies but many other creatures also reside here.
Isolate the house space from the environment with many harmful insects outside, by immediately using the mosquito net door, a smart and very convenient item in today's modern life. Mosquito and insect net doors will help you prevent harmful agents from outside but still ensure to keep the house airy and close to nature. Mesh doors are safe for people and the environment, in addition to saving most of the cost of other insecticides.
Harmful butterflies and how to prevent diseases caused by butterflies
