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- The wings are painted so unusually that it cannot be confused with any other butterfly in the world. Outwardly, the male and female are very similar to each other.
The range of the daytime peacock eye covers all of Europe (except for the northernmost regions) and temperate latitudes Asia.
Butterflies hibernate in basements, attics, in caves... Overwintered individuals fly in March - May, and a new generation appears in July - August.
The butterfly got its name because of the bizarre spots in the lower corner of the wings, which are similar to the shape of the eye. In general, the color of the Peacock eye varies from bright red to deep red. Brown color. All this is artistically diluted in black with beautiful patterns and stripes.
There is also a nocturnal Peacock eye, which differs from its congener in darker colors and brown spots. Its outstretched wings reach up to 15 centimeters in length. At night, the Peacock Eye is very reminiscent of bat than a butterfly.
Apollo
Daytime butterfly, listed in the Red Book. There is a butterfly in the Urals, in Siberia and the mountains of the Caucasus. One of the reasons for this choice of terrain is nutritional habits, Apollo prefers thickets of stonecrop and hare cabbage, which are found mainly in mountainous areas.
The butterfly has a bright beautiful color, it is clearly visible in the open area. Apollo is easily recognizable by its large wings with black and red spots. Depending on the location of the spots, more than 600 forms of this species are distinguished.
Butterflies can be found from June to August. Apollo flies slowly, imposingly, often gets tired, sits on flowers.
Apollo is a real "sissy", a butterfly needs good conditions external environment in order to survive. Bright sun and plenty of food are among the most necessary.
Admiral
Adults of the white admiral have black wings with white stripes. This contrast of colors helps to sort of "break" the wing line, thereby camouflaging the butterfly from predators. Their wingspan is approximately 60-65 millimeters. The flight is very interesting, elegant, consisting of short periods strokes followed by a long hover.
Red Admiral. This is a well-known brightly colored butterfly. This species constantly lives in warmer places, but migrates north in spring, and sometimes back in autumn. This large butterfly is easily recognizable by its bright dark brown with red and black wing pattern. Caterpillars feed on nettle leaves, adults drink nectar from the flowers of plants such as buddleia (which is also called butterfly bush because of this) and can feast on overripe fruits.
In northern Europe, it is one of the last butterflies to be seen before the onset of winter: it appears near a faint fire and feeds on the nectar of autumn flowers on warm days. The red admiral is also known for the fact that when he overwinter, he becomes darker in color than individuals who have not yet survived the winter. The butterfly can also fly out on sunny winter days, for the most part this applies to southern Europe.
mourning house
For many people, their first childhood impressions of butterflies were formed when they met a large, spectacular, memorable mourning place. And for some future entomologists, these impressions turned out to be so strong that they determined the subsequent choice of profession.
Dominant dark color on the wings of the mourner, its names are also associated in other languages. So. Americans call her mourning cloak "mourning robe", and the French - deuil - "mourning", "sorrow". Perhaps this was also taken into account by K. Linnaeus, who in 1758 named the butterfly antiopa - after the daughter of the Theban king Niktey, who, even by the standards of ancient Greek myths, had to endure many troubles and suffering.
“Dark coffee, shiny, lacquered, its wings seem velvety in abundance of colored dust, and to the very abdomen or torso they seem to be covered with moss or thin reddish hairs. The edges of the wings, both upper and lower, are trimmed with a pale yellow, fawn, rather wide jagged border, carved with scallops ... and along the fawn border, on both wings, bright blue spots are placed ... "S. T. Aksakov
Hives
The specific epithet of the scientific name, urticae, comes from the word urtica (nettle) and is explained by the fact that nettle is one of the fodder plants of caterpillars of this species.
Males differ little from females in coloration. Wings are brick-red dorsally, with a number of large black spots separated by yellow gaps near the costal margin; at the top of the front wing there is a small white spot. The basal half of the hind wing is brown-brown, the outer half is brick-red; there is a sharp border between these areas. On the outer edge of the wings there is a row of blue crescent-shaped spots. The lower surface of the wings is brownish-brown, a wide yellowish stripe runs across the front wing.
It is found everywhere in Russia, except for the Far North.
mother-of-pearl
Large mother-of-pearls from the genus Argynnis often fly together and are clearly distinguishable mainly on the underside of the hindwings. Males of large forest mother-of-pearl (A. paphia) with blackouts along the longitudinal veins on the front wings, females are red or greenish-gray above. The bottom of the hind wings of this species has transverse light bands. Mother-of-pearl aglaya (A. aglaja) from below with bright silvery spots, in mother-of-pearl adippa (A. adippe) these spots are dimmer, and there are a number of eyes along the edge. All these species develop on violets.
A large and beautiful mother-of-pearl daphne (Neobrenthis daphne) is rare in the Baikal region and is listed in the Red Book, but a close view of the meadowsweet mother-of-pearl (N. ino) is very commonplace in meadows and glades
Forest mother-of-pearl (male) 
golubyanki
A very large family, including butterflies of small size (wingspan 27-28 mm), many of which have a shiny, metallic color. hallmark pigeons are shortened front legs. Most European pigeons are blue, although males are often brown. Among the pigeons, there are those in which the posterior pair of wings has characteristic outgrowths ("tails"), for which they are called "tails". The family also includes chervonets, bright orange on top. In Russia, there are several hundred species of pigeons from more than fifty genera. Doves fly through meadows, forest edges and clearings. Caterpillars feed on the leaves of trees, shrubs, herbaceous plants. Caterpillars of some species pupate in anthills.
Golubyanka Icarus 
Golubyanka forest or Poluargus 
Belyanki
A family of diurnal butterflies with predominantly white wings and a pattern of yellow, orange and black spots and fields, club-shaped bands, rounded triangular forewings and ovoid hindwings.
Cabbage butterfly 
Swallowtail
The great naturalist Carl Linnaeus named this butterfly in honor of the mythical hero of the Trojan War, the famous doctor Machaon, who alleviated suffering and saved the lives of many wounded soldiers.
Machaon is found throughout the country, with the exception of the Far North.
On the bright yellow wings of the swallowtail, blackened veins and a wide black border with a wavy inner and jagged outer edges stand out. A band of blue sputtering runs along the border, especially bright on the hind wing, and along the outer edge there is a band of yellow spots-holes. The root region of the forewing is black with a yellow coating. The hind wing is decorated with a bright red rounded spot and a black tail.
The caterpillar is not picky in food: it feeds on plants of the families Umbelliferae, rue, Compositae and Lamiaceae. Swallowtail hibernates in the pupal stage.
In most of its range, the swallowtail gives two generations a year, and only in its northernmost regions - one. Butterflies of the first generation fly in May - June, and the second - in July - August.
Sericin montela
Sericin montela is one of the amazing Ussuri relics. The butterfly has been preserved here since ancient times, since the territory of Primorsky Krai has never been subjected to complete glaciation; is rare. The background color of the female's wings is dark brown. Its front wing is crossed by thin dark yellow and ocher yellow bands of various lengths. The flight of these butterflies is very slow, even sluggish. They always stick to thickets of caterpillar food plant - kirkazon, growing in some places along the banks of rivers, streams and at the foot of hills.
The wings of the male are white. The pattern of the forewing consists of black, mostly elongated spots, as well as darkening along the edge of its apex. The rear wing is decorated spectacularly. At its front edge, a red elongated spot in a black frame usually stands out. At the back corner there is a bright red short band, the outer side of which is adjacent to blue spots in a black frame. The hind wing is completed by a long thin brown-brown tail.
tailed maak
This largest diurnal butterfly in Russia surpasses many tropical relatives in its beauty. It is hard to believe that the distribution area of this wonderful sailboat extends to 54 ° north latitude, where Tynda and the north of Sakhalin are located.
The female is larger than the male, its wingspan reaches 135 mm, while that of the male is 125 mm. A green dotted coating evenly covers the entire dark brown front wing of the female. The nature of the pattern of its hind wings is the same as that of the male, but its luster is muted, and in the marginal wavy border, along with green-blue, red-violet hues appear. Females are much more variable than males. It is difficult to find two identical butterflies among them.
A significant part of the black front wing of the male shimmers with a green dotted coating, which thickens closer to the edge into a rarefied emerald-blue border. The area free from green spraying shines with magical black silk: it is covered with the finest and most delicate fragrant black hairs - androconia. Hindwings with a wavy edge and long tails shine, iridescent, with a blue-green ornament
Two generations of P. maackii appear annually: spring moths are medium-sized, light and bright, and summer ones are twice as large and darker.
Tail-bearer Maaka lives in the Middle Amur region, Primorye, North Korea, Manchuria, on Kuril Islands. In these places, butterflies are often found in broad-leaved and mixed forests, less often - in spruce-fir. They also fly into taiga settlements. During the period when subalpine plants bloom, butterflies rise to mountains up to 2000 m above sea level: looking for food, they fly around treeless peaks in a circle.
Sometimes in Primorye one can observe how this huge dark butterfly, like a bird, rushes over a forest road, majestically flapping its powerful wings. On hot days, dozens of tail-bearers sit around roadside puddles, fluttering with flashing emerald greens and blue wings. Disturbed, they take off in a dark cloud, from which drops of water, golden under the sun, rain down, shaken off by butterflies. Unforgettable, fabulous spectacle!
Oleander hawk moth
The color of the oleander hawk moth - one of the most beautiful not only in Russia, but also in the world - is dominated by bright grassy-green colors. Therefore, it is very difficult to see him when he sits in foliage or grass.
The vast distribution area of the oleander hawk includes all of Africa, India and the countries of the Middle East lying between them. There are reports that they even made it to Hawaii. In the tropics, butterflies fly all year round. From Africa and the Middle East, butterflies penetrate into southern Europe, they live on the European continent and to the north. In Russia, they are most often found on Black Sea coast Caucasus. The farther north, the less often they appear, although occasionally these wonderful flyers can be seen both in the Baltic States and on the Kola Peninsula.
The main fodder plants of caterpillars are oleander, periwinkle, vine; they may also feed on some other plants.
The narrow forewings are decorated with a complex pattern of intricately curved green and brownish-lilac stripes of various shades. The hindwings are purplish-gray with a broad green outer margin. The color and pattern of the wings are in harmony with the coloring of the butterfly's body.
Yes, it can be so too... Tropical, alive, in Siberia =)
Today I went to our Art Museum for an exhibition of butterflies ... Firstly, he will leave soon, but I haven’t looked)) And secondly, you need to test a new camera in different conditions))
In general, the event is inexpensive, a ticket for an adult costs 240 rubles, quite comparable to a movie. Children, of course, are entitled to discounts ...
I must say right away that the sensations are contradictory ... Yes, in principle it is beautiful. Butterflies are generally beautiful in general, even our simple ones \u003d and those are lovely))
But ... They are tropical and at the same time alive, with all the ensuing consequences in the form of a microclimate - hot, stuffy, sweat like a river ...
Plus the people - a full wagon, no crowding, noise, hubbub. But this is most likely due to the weekend, besides, in fact, the last for the exhibition, the 30th is already closing...
A significant part of the beauty was also killed by the situation ... Well, how to recreate a tropical climate in Siberia? It’s not a greenhouse ... It’s in Thailand - they threw the net in the park and you’re done - there you have natural light, and greenery, and dimensions - wow ... And here - they covered the perimeter of a small hall with a canvas on which the butterflies are somehow not very looked natural. Above are fluorescent lamps.
Something like this... 
It was problematic to take pictures... The flash is forbidden, the light is strongly reflected from the canvas, the butterflies fly all the time, and if they land, then mostly not with spread wings, as we would like, but with folded ones... In addition, there are so many people that everyone strives to get into the frame willy-nilly or not))
However, I did manage to do something.
Let's see...
These butterflies were the most, in my opinion. Either they are born easily, or they live longer)) 
In general, it’s such a thing with “living” here ... Butterflies, in principle, do not live long, mostly within a week maximum, and so - a few days. Therefore, several generations have changed here during the exhibition.
Not so long ago . She's so beautiful there... And here's what I saw today... Basically, she's almost dead. And they haven’t removed it yet only because, apparently, it is very rare and a record holder. I must say, she lived here longer than the average lives. 
Well, the rest of the dead butterflies, as I understand it, end up here ... Then, apparently, they are dried and there are some things in the collection, I have no idea ... 
But back to beauty...
Everywhere on the walls hung like this newsletters, but something I did not notice that someone read them =)) 
Butterflies looked more natural and beautiful when they managed to catch them on leaves, people ... There were several halves of oranges on the table, a good bait turned out. if only gently, do not shake, do not scream, do not squeal))) 
One half-orange could easily catch several butterflies at once ... 
Well, or even so =))) 
All in all, what can I say...
Worth going with kids. Almost all the children I found here were delighted. Some, however, were afraid.
From time to time, something like an excursion-lecture is held here ... I found a part - informative. Adults, of course, can google there, and children are quite interested in listening...
For those who do not have the opportunity to visit the tropics, they may well join like this ...
In general, our city is not spoiled by such things, so we should not give up what little we have...
The Siberian silkworm is a large butterfly with a wingspan of up to 80 mm (photo below). Males differ from females in their smaller size, the presence of comb antennae. The color is yellowish-brown, brown, gray, black. On the front pair of wings patterns, light spots. Hind wings of a single color. A photo of the Siberian silkworm at the adult stage is presented below.
Eggs are spherical in shape, up to 2 mm in size (photo below). Initially, the eggs are bluish-green in color, gradually changing color to brown.
On a note!
The coloring may vary depending on where the female laid the egg - on the bark of trees, stems, leaves. The eggs of the Siberian silkworm are arranged in heaps or one at a time. Photos can be seen below. In one clutch there can be about 200 pieces.
Caterpillars of the Siberian silkworm are born miniature - about 2 mm. They eat well and grow fast. At the last stage of development, the body length of the larva is 70 mm. The color is changeable - from green to brown and almost black. On the body you can see purple stripes, spots. Caterpillars go through 4 molts, constantly increasing in size. A photo of the offspring of the butterfly can be seen below.
At the end of development, the caterpillar of the Siberian silkworm turns into a chrysalis. It forms a cocoon from a silk thread, which it produces itself. It clings with its paws to the bark of trees, stems, leaves, freezes. Cocoon size up to 40 mm. Initially, the covers are light, then they acquire a brown tint, black, which is clearly seen in the photo of the Siberian silkworm cocoon.
Development features
The flight of butterflies begins in the second half of July and lasts about a month. Mating takes place on the fly. The male dies shortly after fertilization, the female finds a favorable place for laying eggs. Attaches them to the bark of trees, leaves with the help of a special sticky substance that is released along with the eggs.
The larvae inside last up to 22 days, under favorable conditions, the young offspring of the Siberian silkworm appears already on the 13th day. Caterpillars of the first age actively feed on needles and grow rapidly. In the period from August to September, they increase significantly in size, the chitinous cover becomes denser. Photo cycle. At the end of September, the caterpillars climb under the bark, forest litter, and remain for the winter.
With the onset of heat - in May, the larvae rise to the crowns, live and feed there throughout the warm season. Caterpillars endure the second wintering at the fifth or sixth age. They continue to develop in May, pupate by the end of June. The development of a butterfly in a cocoon lasts about a month. Outwardly - a motionless being, inside - there are complex processes of transformation. In early September, young butterflies appear. Their task is to find a secluded place for wintering. Below is a photo of the young.
On a note!
Development takes place over 2-3 years, while butterflies at the adult stage live no more than a month, do not feed on anything. Energy reserves are enough to lay about 300 eggs at a time.
Sabotage
It is not difficult to guess what the Siberian silkworm is dangerous for. Due to the fact that the development of the larvae stretches over several years, and every spring they rise to the crown, there is a risk of weakening the tree.
Butterflies spread their numerous offspring around different plants. In July, mass infection covers several million hectares of forest. This causes enormous damage to forestry. natural enemies Siberian silkworms are gold beetles, bark beetles, barbels. Photos can be seen below. Since bark beetles also cause harm to coniferous plantations, the scale of wrecking increases several times more. Birds of prey eat insects.
In the mid-1990s, the fight against Siberian silkworm larvae lasted 4 years. Then about 600 thousand hectares of forest area suffered from the invasion of pests. Cedar trees died, which were of great value to local residents.
Over the past 100 years, 9 outbreaks of mass wrecking of silkworm caterpillars have been observed in Siberia. It was possible to stop reproduction thanks to the use of modern insecticidal agents. and other plants are taken constantly, if not to kill caterpillars, then to prevent their appearance. A photo mass destruction plants are shown below.
Interesting!
Sericulture is especially developed in China. Natural silk, which is obtained from threads, is highly valued. Insects are specially bred on mulberry, they provide all the necessary conditions for existence. Cocoons are collected, preventing butterflies from being born. The length of the threads of one cocoon is about 900 m. Butterflies lead a sedentary lifestyle, practically do not fly. The larvae are not dangerous to surrounding plants.
Fighting methods
Caterpillars damage larch, oak, beech, birch, pine, spruce, aspen, fir, cedar, maple. prefers deciduous trees, but does not disdain conifers. Larvae of the first age feed during the day, as they grow older they switch to hidden image life - crawl out of shelters at night.
The main control measures:
- Collection and destruction of eggs. In small areas, young trees are scraped off by hand, trampled underfoot, or thrown into the fire. Below is a photo of infected plants.
- In late autumn or early spring, eggs are destroyed with the help of petroleum products - gasoline, kerosene, engine oil. However, you should always remember that these are combustible substances, if used incorrectly, the threat of a massive fire increases.
- Glue rings are used against larvae, which are placed at a level of 1.5-2 m above the ground, which prevents pests from reaching the crown.
- In small areas, caterpillars are harvested by hand, then destroyed by any means.
- Most effective method- Insecticides. Sprayed crowns, tree trunks. Processing is allowed to be carried out in early spring before flowering trees or after. The action of the poison is enough for 20-45 days. Reprocessing is carried out as needed.
Every autumn, spring, you need to carefully examine the bark of trees for the presence of eggs, larvae, coat the trunks with a solution of lime, chalk. Life cycle insect covers several years, so there is always a threat of infection. Spread to other trees occurs either in early spring or late autumn. In the photo, you should carefully consider the pest, so that later you can respond to the problem in a timely manner.
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- the most famous, beautiful and numerous representatives of the Lepidoptera order. These amazing creatures at all times amazed us with an incredible variety of colors, intricate patterns and bizarre shapes. There are more than 140,000 different species of butterflies living on all continents (except Antarctica). The order of butterflies consists of seventeen families, many of which live in Russia, for example, Tolstogolovki, Sailboats, Belyanki, Nymphalida, Satyriad, Golubyanka, Peacock-eye, Zheltushki, Velvet.Lepidoptera are the second largest (after beetles) family among insects.
Butterflies are insects with complete transformation, their body is densely covered with hairs, and their wings are covered with scales (hence the name Lepidoptera). It is from the structure and pigmentation of the scales that the color of the wings of butterflies depends. The arrangement of various scales on the wing naturally forms the most complex pattern characteristic of each species. Like all insects, butterflies lay eggs, from which larvae, called caterpillars, emerge. Caterpillars feed certain types plants, their growth is accompanied by molting (about four) and all types of caterpillars are characterized by the release of silk. Further, the caterpillar turns into a chrysalis, within which a complete transformation takes place within a certain time, as a result of which a new, fully formed and viable butterfly appears in the world.
A characteristic feature of butterflies (except for wings) is a long proboscis, reaching 10 cm, which, at rest, twists into a spiral and hides under the head. This proboscis is a modified lower jaw, transformed into a sucking organ. Butterfly caterpillars, on the other hand, have rather powerful jaws that allow them to eat fairly solid food.
Basically, butterflies lead a twilight lifestyle, and only mace and some representatives of other species are active during the day. Butterflies feed on flower nectar and other sugary plant secretions (for example, the juices of rotting fruits).
The peacock eye is perhaps the most common species of butterflies in Russia and. Thanks to original drawing on the wings it is difficult to confuse it with any other. The upper side of the wing has a cherry-brown color and a characteristic eye spot. Bottom - black-brown. Wingspan 4 - 6 cm.
The first generation of these butterflies lives until the end of July, and during this time it manages to lay eggs (usually on the underside of nettle leaves), from which caterpillars black with a white dot with long black spikes hatch after a while. They rise up to the young shoots of the plant, where they live. large group. Caterpillars pupate, mainly on tree trunks, and somewhere by the beginning of August, the second generation of butterflies is born, the period of activity of which lasts until early October. For wintering, the Peacock eye chooses basements, attics, tree hollows, caves, etc. It is very important that the temperature in the wintering places is low enough, otherwise the butterflies will not fall into a stupor, and, having quickly used up their energy reserve, they will die.
The Peacock eye lives in almost all countries of Europe and Asia (except northern regions). In Russia and Siberia, it can often be seen on forest edges, fields, meadows, orchards and orchards.
There are two more varieties of the Peacock eye: a small nocturnal and a large nocturnal. They differ from daylight in color and size. Particularly noteworthy is the large nocturnal peacock eye. This is the largest butterfly found in Central and Southern Europe, the Caucasus, Asia Minor and Iran. The female of this butterfly in the wingspan reaches 15 centimeters. Its caterpillars live on woody plants (apple, pear, cherry, ash and others).
Cabbage is a diurnal butterfly from the family of whites. About 2.5 centimeters long, with spread wings - up to 6.5 cm wide. The wings are white with a few black spots. On the front wing from above: the outer corner almost to the middle of the rim and a spot on inner edge, and females have two more median spots, black. Two similar spots on the underside. Hind wing with black spot at middle of anterior margin. Below yellow, with black pollen.
Cabbage caterpillar up to 3.5 cm long. Her body is greenish-yellow, dotted with sparse and short black hairs and black dots; along the back and on the sides, above the legs, 3 yellow stripes; head and terminal segment of body, gray dorsally with black dots. In youth - light green, densely covered with black warts. The pupa is yellowish-green, with black spots and dots and a tubercle on the back. Gives two generations during the year. Only pupae hibernate.
AT Siberia butterflies fly in spring and early summer (April-June), at the same time they lay their eggs on various wild-growing cruciferous plants, the leaves of which the caterpillars feed on. This generation does little harm. By the middle of summer, the caterpillars feed and begin to turn into a chrysalis, and at the end of July and in August, the second generation of butterflies appears from the pupae, flying until the end of September. Butterflies of this generation lay their eggs on cabbage, turnips, radishes, rapeseed, mustard, and levkoy. Eggs are stacked in heaps, sometimes 120 pieces, on the underside of the leaves. The second generation of caterpillars emerging from these eggs eats the above-mentioned plants in large areas in vegetable gardens, sometimes completely.
For pupation, the caterpillar is attached with a cobweb belt on fences, stones, stumps, and so on, and hibernates. If there is a warm, long autumn, then the 3rd generation of butterflies may appear from the pupae, the offspring of which mostly die in winter. We have observed more than once massive transitions of cabbage caterpillars from places where all the food was eaten by them to new ones; at the same time, they accumulated in such hordes that they once caused a stop of a train running along rails along which caterpillars walked.
Based on materials big encyclopedia Russia
Butterfly belongs to the class Insects, phylum Arthropoda, order Lepidoptera (Lepidóptera).
The Russian name "butterfly" comes from the Old Slavonic word "babаka", denoting the concept of "old woman" or "grandmother". In the beliefs of the ancient Slavs, it was believed that these were the souls of the dead, so people treated them with respect.
Butterfly: description and photo. The structure and appearance of butterflies
In the structure of a butterfly, two main sections are distinguished - a body protected by a hard chitinous shell and wings.
A butterfly is an insect whose body consists of:
- Head, inactively connected to the chest. The head of a butterfly has a rounded shape with a slightly flattened occiput. Round or oval convex eyes of a butterfly in the form of hemispheres, occupying most of the lateral surface of the head, have a complex facet structure. Butterflies have color vision, and moving objects perceive better than stationary ones. Many species have additional simple parietal eyes behind the antennae. The structure of the oral apparatus depends on the species and can be of a sucking or gnawing type.
- Breast having a three-segment structure. The front part is much smaller than the middle and back, where there are three pairs of legs, which have a structure characteristic of insects. On the shins of the front legs of the butterfly there are spurs designed to maintain the hygiene of the antennae.
- The abdomen has the shape of an elongated cylinder, consisting of ten ring-shaped segments with spiracles located on them.
Butterfly structure
The antennae of a butterfly are located on the border of the parietal and frontal parts of the head. They help butterflies to navigate in the environment, perceiving air vibrations and various smells.
The length and structure of the antennae depend on the species.
Two pairs of butterfly wings, covered with flat scales of various shapes, have a membranous structure and are pierced by transverse and longitudinal veins. The size of the hind wings can be the same as the front wings or much smaller than them. The pattern of butterfly wings varies from species to species and captivates with its beauty.
When macro photography, the scales on the wings of butterflies are very clearly visible - they can have completely different shape and color.
Butterfly wings - macro photography
The appearance and coloration of the butterfly's wings serve not only for intraspecific sexual recognition, but also act as a protective camouflage that allows you to blend in with your surroundings. Therefore, colors can be both monochrome and variegated with a complex pattern.
The size of a butterfly, or better to say the wingspan of a butterfly, can range from 2 mm to 31 cm.
Classification and types of butterflies
The numerous detachment of Lepidoptera includes more than 158 thousand representatives. There are several classification systems for butterflies, quite complex and intricate, with changes constantly taking place in them. The most successful is the scheme that divides this detachment into four suborders:
1) Primary toothed moths. These are small butterflies, the wingspan of which ranges from 4 to 15 mm, with oral apparatus gnawing type and antennae, which reach a length of up to 75% of the size of the front wings. The family consists of 160 species of butterflies.
Typical representatives are:
- golden winged ( Micropteryx calthella);
- marigold smallwing ( Micropteryx calthella).
2) Proboscis butterflies. The wingspan of these insects, covered with dark small scales with cream or black spots, does not exceed 25 mm. Until 1967, they were classified as primary toothed moths, with which this family has much in common.
The most famous butterflies from this suborder:
- flour fire ( Asopia farinalis L..),
- fir cone moth ( Dioryctrica abieteila).
3) Heterobatmia, represented by one family Heterobathmiidae.
4) Proboscis butterflies, which make up the most numerous suborder, consisting of several dozen families, which include more than 150 thousand species of butterflies. Appearance and the sizes of representatives of this suborder are very diverse. Below are several families that demonstrate the diversity of proboscis butterflies.
- Sailboat family, represented by medium and large butterflies with a wingspan of 50 to 280 mm. The pattern on the wings of butterflies consists of black, red or blue spots. various shapes, clearly visible against a white or yellow background. The most famous of them are:
- Butterfly swallowtail;
- Sailboat "Glory of Bhutan";
- Birdwing of Queen Alexandra and others.
Butterfly swallowtail
- Nymphalidae family, feature which is the absence of thickened veins on wide angular wings with variegated coloration and various patterns. Butterfly wingspan varies from 50 to 130 mm. Representatives of this family are:
- Butterfly admiral;
- Butterfly diurnal peacock eye;
- Butterfly urticaria;
- Butterfly mourning, etc.
Butterfly Admiral (Vanessa atalanta)
Butterfly diurnal peacock eye
Butterfly urticaria (Aglais urticae)
Butterfly mourner
- , represented by night butterflies with narrow wings, the span of which does not exceed 13 cm and is distinguished by a characteristic pattern. The abdomen of these insects is thickened and spindle-shaped. The most famous butterflies of this family:
- Hawk hawk "dead head";
- Oleander hawk;
- Poplar hawk.
- Owl family, which includes more than 35,000 species of night butterflies. The span of gray with a metallic shade of fluffy wings averages 35 mm. However, in South America there is a species of butterflies tizania agrippina with a wingspan of 31 cm or atlas peacock-eye, the size of which resembles a medium-sized bird.
Where do butterflies live in nature?
The distribution range of butterflies on the planet is very wide. It does not include only the ice expanses of Antarctica. Butterflies live everywhere from North America and Greenland to the coast of Australia and the island of Tasmania. The largest number of species was found in Peru and India. These fluttering insects make their flights not only in the flowering valleys, but also high in the mountains.
What do butterflies eat?
The diet of many butterflies consists of pollen and nectar from flowering plants. Many species of butterflies feed on tree sap, overripe and rotting fruit. And the dead head hawk moth is a real gourmet, because it often flies into hives and regales itself on the honey they have collected.
Some Nymphalidae butterflies need various trace elements and additional moisture. Their source is excrement, urine and sweat of large animals, wet clay, and human sweat.
.These butterflies include the Madagascar comet, whose wingspan is 14-16 cm. The life expectancy of this butterfly is 2-3 days.
Also among the butterflies there are "vampires". For example, males of some species of cutworms maintain their strength thanks to the blood and tear fluid of animals.
Such is the vampire butterfly (lat. Calyptra).
