Interesting facts about butterflies. 50 most interesting facts about butterflies Important facts about butterflies

Butterflies are stunning creations of heavenly beauty, real decorations of nature. You can watch them fluttering and whirling endlessly. Appearance these insects are fascinating. In their Everyday life a lot of interesting things happen, many facts are very entertaining and unusual.

The smallest butterflies on the planet

There are two types - acetozea and radiculosis. They are so small that they can simply be overlooked. The wingspan of these crumbs is only 2 mm.

The biggest butterflies in the world

Most large insect- peacock-eye atlas. This butterfly resembles a bird, as its wingspan is as much as 24 cm.

Survive among the ice and frost

Apollo is the only Lepidoptera that can survive in low temperatures calmly and without much damage to itself.

This butterfly can be found in those places where the area is constantly wrapped in snow and covered with ice.

Butterflies-bloodsuckers

There are butterflies that, like mosquitoes, are able to drink human blood. These are owls - very rare view(they are also called vampires). If in mosquitoes bloodsuckers are females, then, on the contrary, only males bite.

Delicacy

The countries of Asia differ from other countries of the world in that it is considered the norm here to eat insects, pupae and caterpillars. And butterflies are no exception. Here it is an incredible and rare delicacy that requires special skills and skill in cooking.

Nutrition Features

Many are deeply convinced that all butterflies, without exception, feed on nectar. This is far from true. It turns out that there are some varieties of these insects that prefer fruits that have begun to deteriorate, for example, the red admiral.

Others believe that there is nothing tastier than manure. And still others do not eat anything at all, using for flights and living the energy that they managed to accumulate, being in the form of a caterpillar and a chrysalis.

Symbols

In Japan, butterflies are considered symbols of family happiness and longevity. At the wedding, it is customary to give origami of these insects at random.

But in Italy, butterflies are considered symbols of impending troubles, wars, devastation and hunger.

water lovers

In general, butterflies cannot stand water. The thing is that once these beauties wet their wings, they run the risk of never taking off again.

But there is an exception - this is the lilac moth. She has the unique ability to submerge completely in water and emerge completely dry.

Features of vision

If you look at the eyes of butterflies at high magnification, you can see that they consist of several hundred lenses, all this is very similar to honeycombs. These insects distinguish several colors: red, yellow and green.

Deafness

Butterflies do not distinguish sounds at all. And the question arises, how then do they manage to recognize the danger and fly away and hide in time. The fact is that insects are guided by vibration, which is why they quickly recognize the approach of the enemy.

It turns out that butterflies can amaze not only with their amazing appearance and beauty, but also with behavioral features that are really unique and unusual.

Someone, looking at butterflies, admires their weightless beauty, and someone claims that they are furry caterpillars with wings. The truth, as always, is somewhere in the middle - after all, butterflies do develop from caterpillars. There are a great many species of these creatures in the world, which are studied and bred by thousands of enthusiasts.

Butterfly Facts

• Butterfly wingspan and shape different types varies from 2 mm to 28 cm.
• Butterflies (or, as scientists call them, Lepidoptera) are one of the richest insect orders in terms of the number of species. To date, more than 158,000 butterflies are known to exist on the planet. It is assumed that even up to 100 thousand species of these insects have not yet been discovered by scientists.
• Butterflies inhabit all continents and islands of the Earth, except for Antarctica (facts about Antarctica).
• Butterflies appeared on the planet more than 200 million years ago - scientists discovered their remains dating back to the Jurassic period.
• The Russian word "butterfly" comes from the word "babka". The comparison of these wonderful insects with old women is due to the fact that earlier butterflies were considered the souls of the dead. In some villages they are still called "grandmothers" or "grandmothers".
• Agrippina scoop - a butterfly with the largest wingspan of all known species these insects. It is up to 28 cm, and according to some sources - even up to 31 cm.
• The record-breaking butterfly for the total wing area is the female Saturnia, living in Australia and New Guinea. The surface of its wings can reach 263 cm (Facts about Australia).
• Some of the smallest butterflies on the planet are baby moths, whose wingspan is about 4 mm.
• The largest diurnal butterfly living on Russian territory- Maak's sailboat (wingspan up to 13.5 cm), and the night one - a large nocturnal peacock eye (up to 15 cm).
• Some butterflies, such as peacock-eyes or clothes moths, do not eat at all - during adulthood they spend nutrients accumulated at the caterpillar stage.
• Bag butterflies, or psyches, live in the form of an adult insect for only a few minutes, during which they have time to mate and lay eggs.

• The compound eyes of butterflies can have up to 27,000 segments.
• The vision of butterflies allows them to distinguish colors, however, the ability to see certain shades depends on the species. It is known that the most attractive colors for butterflies are blue-violet and yellow-red (vision facts).
• Butterflies see moving objects much better than stationary ones.
• Most butterflies sense taste using receptors located on their legs, just like spiders (spider facts).
• Some butterflies have special membranes on their abdomens that allow them to hear ultrasound from 10 to 100 kHz.
• Almost all butterflies have a symmetrical pattern on the right and left wings, but there are also species with different patterns on each side of the body - for example, the Madagascar urania (facts about Madagascar).
• The color and pattern of butterfly wings depend on the conditions in which the caterpillar lived and at what temperature the chrysalis developed into which it turned.
• The body temperature of butterflies, optimal for flight, is 30-35 degrees Celsius.
• Most butterflies are able to reach speeds of 7 to 17 km/h in flight.
• Butterflies from the genus Scoop, living in India and Malaysia, feed on the tears and blood of large animals (facts about India).
• In butterflies, during the development of which a genetic mutation occurs, one half of the body can be male and the other half female. Sometimes only certain parts of the body of a butterfly have signs of a different sex - for example, a piece of a male's wing has a color characteristic of females.
• Butterfly mating lasts from 20 minutes to several hours. All this time, the female and male are completely motionless.

Butterflies are well-known insects that attract especially great attention, since many species are large in size, bright, beautiful in color and are often found in forests, gardens, meadows and glades. There are 8,000 species of butterflies in the CIS.

The scientific name of the order - Lepidoptera - is based on the most important feature of these insects: the large wings of butterflies are covered with tiny scales. These scales are brightly colored, arranged on the wings in a strict order and form a wing pattern. From this picture it is easy to determine the type of butterfly. Under the scales, the wings of all butterflies are the same: they are a transparent or whitish thin plate, reinforced with a kind of skeleton, consisting of thicker, darker and more elastic veins. The veins form a pattern of cells. Different groups of butterflies differ well in the length and direction of the veins and in the shape of the cells. These signs are used in more complete determinants.

Another important feature of butterflies is the development of the so-called proboscis in many species. This is a thin long tube that arose from the mouth organs, with the help of which butterflies feed on the nectar of flowers, and some - on the flowing tree sap. The proboscis of most species is spirally twisted. Those butterflies that do not feed do not have a proboscis.

Butterfly antennae are very diverse. large group butterflies has thin long antennae with a club-shaped extension at the very end. These butterflies are diurnal and are called mace or diurnal butterflies.

Another group of butterflies leads the twilight and night image life. They are called night butterflies. The structure of the antennae of moths is very diverse, most species have filiform or feathery antennae. In males, the antennae often have a more complex structure than in females.

Diurnal butterflies fly slowly, flutter, while nocturnal species often have a very fast flight.

On the head of butterflies are large bulging eyes. Thoracic of these insects is very well developed - it contains strong flying muscles. The abdomen is elongated, in females it is often very thick, as it contains big number eggs. Butterflies have 3 pairs of well-developed legs, however, in some species, the front legs are shortened.

Butterflies in nature are found throughout the warm season. Overwintered specimens begin to fly in early spring. From eggs laid by females in late autumn, young caterpillars appear in spring.

Butterfly larvae are called caterpillars. The fleshy body of caterpillars is naked or covered with hair. The head is large, with gnawing mouthparts. Caterpillars are remarkable in that, in addition to short chest legs, they also have tenacious ventral legs. These legs are unusual, they are muscular outgrowths of the body, equipped with a tenacious, hooked sole. The ventral legs of caterpillars are called false legs to emphasize their difference from the true, pectoral legs. However, it is the ventral legs that are adapted for climbing plants, on which the caterpillars of most species of butterflies develop.

Caterpillars are herbivorous, only a few prey or eat grain, wax, wool or woolen products (for example, some moths). Having reached maturity, caterpillars for pupation weave a cocoon or pupate without a cocoon - under the bark, in various shelters, in upper layers soil or openly on plants, fences, walls of buildings, etc. Butterflies usually emerge from pupae in 2-3 weeks.

The importance of butterflies in nature, agriculture and forestry is very high. Some types of butterflies are able to reproduce in huge numbers. During these periods, they destroy the foliage and needles of trees, damaging tens and hundreds of thousands of hectares of forest, damage horticulture, especially fruit trees, destroy the results of the work of vegetable growers, attacking cabbage and root crops, etc. There are among butterflies and beneficial species. They are bred, for example, in order to obtain silk from cocoons.

Butterflies are beautiful creatures. I think everyone knows what a butterfly looks like and probably met this terrible beast =)

These unique creatures are the second largest pollinators after bees.

The science that studies butterflies is called lepidopterology. An entomologist who studies butterflies is called a lepidopterologist (from the Latin name for the order of butterflies - Lepidoptera, which translates as "lepidoptera"). A lepidopterist is a person who is simply fond of butterflies.

The largest night butterfly in the world - This is the peacock-eye Atlas (Attacus Atlas). Its wingspan is over 30 cm and it is often mistaken for a bird.

Basically, most butterflies have short life- just a few days. However, there are instances with rather long life cycle: The Brixton butterfly is long-lived, its cycle lasts up to 10 months.

A female butterfly can lay over 1,000 eggs in her short life.

Butterflies literally work wonders. The species Parnassius arcticus lives in Siberia near the Arctic Circle. It flies to places where snow and ice never melt. Its close relative Parnassius bannyngtoni from the Himalayas is the highest mountain butterfly in the world. It can be found, rising even 6000 meters above sea level.

In the pigeon butterfly (Zizula hylax), which lives in Africa, Madagascar, Mauritius, Arabia and tropical zone Asia and Australia, the length of the forewing is 6 mm. This is the smallest butterfly in the world.

In addition to what we are used to tropical butterflies, there are still arctic butterflies. They are inconspicuous in appearance, their wings are not bright, but whitish or almost transparent, as if glass. Several species of butterflies that live on the Canadian island of Queen Elizabeth, 750 kilometers from the North Pole, can be called real polar explorers.

The maximum speed this little creature can reach is 12 miles per hour, but there are species that reach the mark of 50 km/h (31 mph). The fastest flight of butterflies of the hawk family.

by the most amazing fact about these creatures is that butterflies need the warmth of the sun in order to fly.

The most common butterfly in Russia and Siberia is the Peacock eye. Thanks to its original drawing, it is hard to confuse it with any other: top part the wing has a cherry-brown color and a spot in the form of an eye, which is characteristic of this species, but completely black-brown below.

The life cycle of these creatures consists of four phases: egg, caterpillar, chrysalis and adult (butterfly).

A butterfly lays its offspring in one place for many years in a row.

Butterflies never sleep.

The most complex organ of these amazing creatures- eyes. They are made up of 6,000 tiny pieces called lenses.

Butterflies are ancient creatures. Their images are present on Egyptian frescoes, which are more than 2.5 thousand years old.

Butterflies are one of the most common collectibles.

In the world there is more than one species of these insects, which can rightfully be considered the rarest. One of them is Queen Alexandra's sailboat, the largest butterfly on the planet.

It is possible to find only on the territory of Papua New Guinea and thanks to collectors, this species is on the verge of extinction.

There are several species of these beautiful creatures that do not eat at all during the entire imago cycle (the last stage of life). Such individuals live due to the energy accumulated during the period when the butterfly was still a caterpillar.

The Blue Dwarf is considered to be the smallest butterfly in the world, with a wingspan of only 1.4 cm.

IN tropical forests There is a species of butterflies of the New and Old Worlds, the males of which feed on the tears of animals.

At the brazilian butterfly calligo another way to protect. Seeing a bird, it turns over, showing the enemy the wrong side of its wings.

The enemy has no choice but to retreat hastily.

It's all about the pattern on the wings. This is an image of an owl with a sharp beak and large eyes.

Well, the owl is the worst enemy of birds.

Female butterflies generally live longer and longer than male butterflies. Something like people ;-)

Butterflies are great stress relievers. The doctors of Stockholm are convinced of this. The clinics of this city have greenhouses with butterflies and flowers, where patients successfully undergo treatment for stress.

Butterflies are nearsighted!

It turns out that the secret of the butterfly is hidden precisely in its scales on the wings. They maintain the temperature balance, and also increase the airworthiness.

But with blood circulation, everything is simple. No heart, no veins and no arteries. All this is replaced by a vessel located in the abdomen, passing into the head in the form of a tube.

The pattern on the wings of a butterfly is unique, just like human fingerprints.

Only the Dead Head hawk moth (Acherontia atropos) has a special “speech” organ located in the pharynx. This butterfly, with anxiety or a sense of danger, can squeak.

Butterflies weigh about as much as two rose petals.

Butterfly migration

Among African butterflies, Catopsilia florella makes the longest migrations. Every year from December to February, its representatives, inhabiting the arid regions of the Sahel, fly south in tens of millions. Destination - Zaire - a few thousand kilometers from the start.

Unlike migratory species of temperate latitudes, migration is caused not by the onset of spring, but by the beginning of the rainy season in the south: at this time, many flowers will bloom there, which will provide butterflies with food. They fly in whole clouds up to 20 long and up to 5 kilometers wide.

If such a flock descends to the ground, it is quite capable of turning off car engines! With the return of the dry season, the butterflies head back to the Sahel. Other populations of this species migrate in a similar way, but they fly out from southern Africa (Cape Province of South Africa) and head to the northwest.

Migratory behavior is uncommon in butterflies; it is known only in 200 out of 18,000 diurnal species, and only two dozen of them are comparable in extent and regularity of their flights to Catopsilia florella.

P.S. Interesting fact: During the winter in Southern California, tourists are shown butterfly trees covered with monarch butterflies resting after a long flight from North America. The branches of these trees sag under the weight of a huge number of butterflies! It is impossible to disturb the monarchs - an impressive fine is due for this.

Bright fluttering butterflies can leave few people indifferent. Smoothly circling over the flower meadow, they fascinate with their beauty and deeply touch the strings of the human soul. In addition to beauty, these unusual insects are interesting for their behavior and life features. In the article we will share with readers unusual stories from the life of butterflies. In our material, we have collected a variety of interesting facts about butterflies. Such information will be especially informative for younger students and toddlers. Information can be used in the classroom or simply told to children in order to expand knowledge about the world around little researchers.

Who are butterflies?

Butterflies - Lepidoptera. This means that on their wings there are many small scales, which, refracting sunlight at different angles, form a characteristic pattern.

Often children confuse scales with pollen. They are trying to shake off, to clean the wings of an insect. In fact, this is by no means the case. remember, she will not be able to fly and will die.

But in nature there are also butterflies without wings. These are species such as the steppe and common volyanka. They live in a cocoon and feed on what they managed to stock up with caterpillars.

There are also butterflies that can dive. These are insects such as underwater moths. Interesting facts about butterflies for children in grade 2 can be used in nature studies lessons. It will still be difficult for preschoolers to understand the physiology of insects. But it is possible and necessary to teach kids to take care of nature at any age.

Butterflies have three pairs of legs and a long proboscis, which, if necessary, turns into a full-fledged organ of nutrition. These Lepidoptera are plant pollinators, just like bees. Also, they never sleep. Some attract attention with their unusual bright color, while others, on the contrary, are masked. So, for example, the lemongrass butterfly looks like a leaf. Interesting facts about this beauty can be found below.

Butterflies live all over the world except Antarctica. But the life span of these insects is short: from a few days to six months, depending on the species.

The science that studies butterflies is called lepidopterology.

What do butterflies eat?

Depending on the species, insects can feed on flower nectar, sap from trees, and rotten fruit. Some prefer tears and animal droppings. At a certain period, do not mind eating mud, thanks to which you can stock up minerals. A butterfly of the Calyptra species feeds on the blood of cattle. In addition, some subspecies can suck and drink blood from an open wound, while others are even able to independently pierce the skin with a sharp proboscis.

These interesting facts about butterflies can be presented in a playful way even to the youngest children.

The magic of birth

Until now, not a single scientist has been able to explain all the metamorphoses that occur in interesting facts about butterflies can be told by telling about the stages of the appearance of such an unusual insect. So, a butterfly goes through several stages of formation: egg - caterpillar (larva) - pupa - adult.

The sexually mature female lays eggs most often on the leaves of trees. Some species protect their offspring by burying their eggs in the ground, others cover them with their own scales, and others have the ability to produce special mucus.

Depending on the type of insect and external factors, caterpillar eggs can hatch within a few days or months. This period is characterized by the fact that the insect actively feeds, stocking up with the necessary substances.

In the process of molting, morphological changes occur - the insect turns into a chrysalis. Butterflies protect their peace in different ways: some weave cocoons from a silk thread that they themselves produce, others build a “house” from grains of sand and earth, and still others from their own cuticles.

Fluttering beauties are born with unspread wet wings. Therefore, at the time of hatching from the chrysalis, it is extremely important for butterflies to have a support in the form of a twig - clasping it with their paws, insects dry and spread their wings. Then they can safely make their first flight.

We recommend bringing such interesting facts about butterflies for children when walking in the spring in the park or on suburban area. And you can consolidate theoretical knowledge by observing the development of an insect from a larva to an adult butterfly on walks.

Butterflies in mythology

Interesting facts about butterflies, their origin and people's attitude to these insects can be found by getting acquainted with archaeological artifacts. Butterflies are the most ancient insects. Excavations have unearthed remains that are 150 million years old. There are about 160,000 species of these unusual representatives fauna.

In ancient times, butterflies, like everything mysterious and unsolved, were both admired and feared at the same time. Unusual insect provoked mystification and deification of such a creature.

During excavations, frescoes of the ancient Egyptians were found, which depict butterflies. At that time people identified human life with this insect.

For some peoples, a butterfly is a harbinger of happiness, joy, love. Others believe that the fluttering insect is the souls of dead people, the embodiment of demons and witches.

In ancient Greek myths, butterflies are found in the role of Psyche - a girl who personifies the human soul, and the Scandinavian peoples came up with elves - kind little men with butterfly wings. In India, the butterfly was considered the progenitor of the whole world. And the Buddha devoted a whole sermon to this insect. In many beliefs, the butterfly represents rebirth and immortality.

Such interesting facts from the life of butterflies will interest not only children, but also adults.

Folk omens

According to the behavior of butterflies, people predict the weather. So, if the hives hid, it will soon rain. IN rainy weather flies - be warm.

If butterflies flutter over a person - good news, happiness.

A butterfly flew into the window - not good, you definitely need to release the insect into the wild.

Traditions

Today you will not surprise guests with a salute of butterflies at a wedding or anniversary. It turns out that not one hundred years! She originated in Japan. The lightness and charm of insects were compared with the art of a geisha. Therefore, butterflies at the wedding were considered a wish for the bride to comprehend female wisdom. And a pair of butterflies symbolized a strong marriage. These interesting facts about butterflies have long been noted by modern wedding organizers, offering young people to decorate the holiday with live and artificial butterflies.

Modern Chinese weddings cannot do without the butterfly symbol: before the wedding, the groom gives the bride an ornament in the form of this insect as a symbol of love and care.

Butterflies were specially bred even at the court of Louis XIV. In the winter garden of the king one could meet insects of various colors and types.

record holders

The most interesting facts about record-breaking butterflies:

1. The largest representative of the species is Tisania agrippina. Its wingspan is almost 31 cm. A little less than the Birdwing. Its dimensions reach 28 cm.
2. The smallest is the Malyutka mole. Its open wings are 2 mm long.
3. The longest proboscis is in Brazhnikov. In a species that lives in Madagascar, the length of this organ is 28 cm.
4. The most common butterfly in the world is the Vanessa Cardi butterfly of the Nymphalidae family.
5. The loudest squeak is the disturbed Dead Head of the Moth family.
6. The sense of smell in Peacock-Eyes is acutely developed. They catch the smell at a distance of 10 km.
7. The Moths fly the fastest of all.
8. The heaviest representative of butterflies is Boisduval.

Lemon Butterfly: Interesting Facts

In our latitudes, you can find lemongrass, belonging to the White family. It is very difficult to notice in the foliage, as the color resembles a tree leaf. You can often see how children are surprised at the unusual flight of the "leaf". This color is a protective disguise.

One more interesting feature Lemongrass is the fact that it never lands with its wings open. If you disturb the butterfly, it will fold its wings and legs, and then fall down, thus disguising itself as a twig or fallen leaf. She is a long-liver, as she can live for more than a year.

We have told you just some interesting facts about butterflies. It is important for children to learn that butterflies are extraordinary creatures. Each species has its own characteristics and inexplicable abilities. They captivate and inspire. It should be emphasized that it is impossible to destroy such beautiful creatures for fun or a fleeting hobby. From a very early age, adults should explain to kids the importance of such a small creature as a butterfly in the world around them.