Butterflies
Butterflies are popular, well-known insects with large,
colorful wings covered with tiny scales. Together with moths,
butterflies make up the order Lepidoptera, which contains over
150,000 species or kinds. Scientists estimate that about 15,000
butterfly species exist worldwide. During its life cycle, a butterfly
undergoes a complete metamorphosis (pronounced met-uh-MORE-fuhsiss) during
which it changes from a leaf-eating caterpillar to a nectar-sipping butterfly.
It is thought that the word butterfly may have originated in
England when people
started calling the yellow Brimstone or the English sulfur a "butter-colored fly"
because the pretty insect reminded them of the color of butter. Eventually it was
shortened to "butterfly." The scientific name of its order, Lepidoptera, means
"scaly wings" in Latin. This is a correct description since their wings and their
bodies are covered with tiny scales. Butterflies and moths are the only insects that
have scales. Moths and butterflies are mainly different in their appearance and activities.
Moths fly mostly at night and usually have a dull color. Butterflies are active during the
day and are brightly colored. Their bodies are thin and hairless, while most moths have plump
and furry bodies.
Some Facts About Butterflies
1.Butterfly wings are not solely for flight; they also act as miniature solar panels.
2.A butterfly has a small body, made of three parts - the head, thorax and abdomen. Butterflies have two large eyes, which are made of many, many small parts. These are called 'compound eyes'.
3. They have two antennae on top of their heads, which they use to feel, smell and to hear. A butterfly's mouth is a long tube, through which it sucks the sweet nectar from flowers. When the butterfly does not want to eat, it rolls the tube up!
4.Butterflies have three pairs of legs. Their feet have little claws to stand on flowers. Some butterflies, like the peacock, only use four of their legs, carrying the two front legs against their bodies.
5.Some butterflies can fly 50km/h or faster. Slow flying butterflies probably fly about 10km/h.
6.The wings of the butterfly are made of hard tubes covered with thin tissue. The wings are covered with scales, which are like a fine dust.
2.A butterfly has a small body, made of three parts - the head, thorax and abdomen. Butterflies have two large eyes, which are made of many, many small parts. These are called 'compound eyes'.
3. They have two antennae on top of their heads, which they use to feel, smell and to hear. A butterfly's mouth is a long tube, through which it sucks the sweet nectar from flowers. When the butterfly does not want to eat, it rolls the tube up!
4.Butterflies have three pairs of legs. Their feet have little claws to stand on flowers. Some butterflies, like the peacock, only use four of their legs, carrying the two front legs against their bodies.
5.Some butterflies can fly 50km/h or faster. Slow flying butterflies probably fly about 10km/h.
6.The wings of the butterfly are made of hard tubes covered with thin tissue. The wings are covered with scales, which are like a fine dust.
Unique life cycle
One of the most interesting
things about butterflies is their unique life cycle.
When a butterfly changes from a slow-moving, fat caterpillar
to a colorfully winged, beautiful flying insect, one of nature's
most magical events occurs. This metamorphosis happens to most insects,
but not as dramatically as it does to a butterfly (the word metamorphosis
is Greek for "change in form"). There are four stages in a butterfly's metamorphosis.
Every butterfly begins life as an egg. After mating, the female lays her eggs
(she actually "glues" them) in small clusters on the leaves of a certain plant.
Each species selects its own plant, and the eggs of each are different in shape
and markings. In many species, the female dies shortly after doing this.
When the egg hatches, the larva emerges. Actually a tiny caterpillar eats
its way out the egg, and then proceeds to eat the eggshell. This caterpillar is a
true eating machine, and it continues to eat the leaves of the plant where its mother laid her eggs.
Caterpillars have one goal-to eat as much as possible-and in their short lifetimes they may eat as much
as twenty times their own weight. Caterpillars naturally grow quickly with all this eating, and since their
skin cannot stretch, it splits and is shed. This is called molting and it happens several times as the
caterpillar gets fatter and fatter. It is at this slow-moving stage that many a caterpillar is devoured
by a hungry bird. Still, many protect themselves by using their colors to blend in with their environment.
Other have sharp spines or prickly hairs on their bodies to deter predators, while still others have circles
or spots on their skin that trick their predators into thinking that the caterpillar is really a larger animal than it is.
