Interesting facts from the life of butterflies. The most amazing facts about butterflies. Stages of butterfly reproduction. Transformation of a caterpillar into a butterfly

Butterflies are representatives of the order Lepidoptera of the class Insects of the Arthropod type.

Butterflies as arthropods

As representatives of this type of butterfly, they have:

• segmented body;
• paired jointed limbs;
• chitinous cover.

A covering of chitin protects their body and serves as a support for organs. And the segmented body and legs allow movement with such cover.

Butterflies are like insects

Insects differ from other arthropods in the following features:

• the body consists of 3 sections (head, chest, abdomen);
• have three pairs of legs;
• have two pairs of wings.

On the head of butterflies there are antennae - the organs of smell, compound eyes, palps - the organs of touch.

The chest consists of three large segments, each of them has a pair of legs, and the first and second have a pair of wings.

The abdomen is also made up of segments and on each of them there are a pair of respiratory openings - spiracles.

Butterflies as Lepidoptera

This is a special order of insects, which includes more than 150 thousand species. They differ from other insects in a number of distinctive features:

1. They have two pairs of large wings covered with scales. It is the scales that provide the variety of colors of these insects.
2. Butterflies feed on liquid food, mainly nectar. Therefore, they have a sucking mouthpart in the form of a proboscis.
3. Their development with complete transformation: egg - larva - pupa - imago.
4. The larvae of butterflies are caterpillars
5. Caterpillars have chewing mouthparts and no wings.

Butterflies are diurnal (swallowtail, admiral, urticaria) and nocturnal (hawk moth, bear). They differ in body type - daytime ones are slimmer; type of antennae: in the daytime they are club-shaped, in the nocturnal ones they are feathery; folding wings: day wings fold them vertically, and night wings fold them horizontally.

The largest wings with a span of up to 30 cm are possessed by the tropical butterflies Alexander the birdwing and the Atlas peacockwing, which is called the King of Darkness due to its nocturnal lifestyle.

In South America there is a small butterfly called the glass butterfly. The middle of her wings are completely transparent.

One of the smallest daytime butterflies is our compatriot - the Icarus blueberry. Its wings are no more than 1 cm.

And this is true; in the amazingly diverse world of insects, butterflies are the most beautiful creatures. In addition, butterflies are not only beautiful, some rare tropical butterflies can cost thousands of dollars, and there are even special people who professionally search for and capture such butterflies, which are then sold to wealthy collectors. In our article we will tell you all the most interesting things about these amazing creatures - the butterfly.

Butterfly: description, structure, characteristics. What does a butterfly look like?

According to the zoological classification, butterflies belong to arthropod insects, the order Lepidoptera. The name “butterfly” itself comes from the Old Slavonic word “grandmother”, meaning grandmother, old woman. Why is the butterfly associated with older people? The fact is that, according to the beliefs of the ancient Slavs, the souls of deceased ancestors turn into butterflies and therefore they must be treated with the utmost respect.

The external structure of the butterfly consists of two parts: the body, which is protected by a durable chitinous shell, and wings. The body of the butterfly, in turn, consists of the head, thorax and abdomen. Let's look at them in detail below.

The butterfly's head is round in shape with a flattened occipital part and is connected to the chest. The bulging eyes of the butterfly are round or oval in shape and occupy most of the surface of the head. The eyes themselves have a complex facet structure, thanks to which butterflies have color vision. But there is a nuance regarding the vision of butterflies: they perfectly distinguish moving objects, but they perceive stationary objects worse. Also, some species of butterflies have additional parietal eyes behind the antennae. The mouthparts of a butterfly, depending on its species, can be of the sucking or gnawing type.

The butterfly's breasts have a three-segment structure. Their front part is smaller than the middle and back. On the back of the butterfly's breasts there are three pairs of legs (or paws), which have a structure characteristic of insects. The front legs of the butterfly have spurs on the legs, which are designed to maintain the hygiene of the antennae.

The butterfly's abdomen is shaped like an elongated cylinder and consists of ten ring-shaped segments.

This is a schematic view of the internal structure of a butterfly.

At the border of the frontal and parietal parts of the head, the butterfly has antennae. Thanks to them, butterflies can navigate the surrounding space, perceiving both various odors and the slightest vibrations in the air. The length and structure of the antennae of a butterfly depend on its species.

The wings of a butterfly consist of two pairs; they are covered with flat scales of different shapes, penetrated by longitudinal and transverse veins and have a membranous structure. Moreover, the size of the hind wings can be either the same as the front wings or significantly smaller than them. It is the pattern of butterfly wings, which can have a wide variety of color combinations, that makes butterflies so beautiful. But it is worth noting that the coloring of butterflies serves not only for beauty, but also as a protective camouflage, which sometimes allows the butterfly to blend into its surroundings.

The size of the butterfly, or more precisely, its wingspan, depending on the species, can range from 2 mm to 31 cm.

How long do butterflies live in nature and at home?

The lifespan of a butterfly depends greatly on its species and the climate in which it lives. Usually the life of a butterfly is short, lasting from several days to several weeks. However, there are so-called long-lived butterflies that can live up to two years. But they can only live to such a respectable lifespan by the standards of a butterfly at home, since in nature butterflies have many enemies, few of them survive to old age.

Where do butterflies live?

Butterflies live almost everywhere, with the exception of the northern Arctic latitudes. Of course, they don’t exist in cold Antarctica either. In general, butterflies love warmth, so they are especially abundant in warm tropical latitudes.

What do butterflies eat?

Pollen and nectar from flowering plants are the main diet of butterflies. Some species of butterflies are not averse to feasting on tree sap and rotten fruit. There is also such an interesting butterfly as the death's head hawk moth, it is notable for the fact that it loves to fly into the hive and feast on their honey.

Sometimes among butterflies there are real gourmets, for example, some tropical butterflies drink the tears and crocodiles.

Interesting fact: among butterflies, there are also those that completely lack mouthparts. How do they eat?! But in no way, the fact is that in order to maintain life, they use up the reserves of nutrients that they accumulated when they were still caterpillars. One such unusual butterfly is the Madagascar comet. Of course, life expectancy with such nutrition (or rather the complete absence of it) is only 2-3 days.

Among the numerous kingdom of butterflies there is also a real vampire butterfly, which similarly feeds on the blood of other animals.

What do butterflies do in winter?

Butterflies living in tropical latitudes have it easier in this regard, but our butterflies living in a temperate climate zone have to survive the winter cold, how do they do it? Some butterflies do not survive the winter, they live only in the summer, during which time they leave offspring that survive the winter in the form of pupae. But there are also species of butterflies that survive the winter cold by hiding in tree hollows or deep cracks in the bark. Also, some species of butterflies, like birds, with the onset of cold weather, rush to fly to warmer climes. For example, such travel butterflies are the monarch and the oleander hawk moth.

Enemies of butterflies

In nature, butterflies have many enemies who are not averse to feasting on them. These include numerous birds of prey and some large insects and snakes.

Classification and types of butterflies

There are incredibly many different types of butterflies; zoologists have counted as many as 158 thousand different butterflies. For all this diversity, there are several complex and confusing classification systems. In our opinion, the most successful is the system that divides butterflies into 4 suborders.

Primary toothed moths

This includes small butterflies whose wingspan ranges from 4 to 15 mm. Butterflies of this suborder have a gnawing mouth and long antennae reaching 75% of the size of their front wings. The suborder consists of 160 species of butterflies. Among the representatives are:

• golden winged wing,
• marigold smallmouth.

Proboscis butterflies

The wingspan of these butterflies is no more than 25 mm. Previously, they were classified as primary toothed moths, with which these butterflies have much in common. The most famous butterflies of this suborder:

• spruce cone moth.

Proboscis butterflies

They are the most numerous suborder, which includes several tens of thousands of different families of butterflies. The appearance and size of proboscis butterflies can vary significantly. Among the families of butterflies we can distinguish:

Family Sailboats

It is represented by medium and large butterflies with a wingspan from 50 to 280 mm. The pattern on their wings may consist of black, red or blue spots. Among the most famous butterflies of this family are:

• sailing ship "Glory of Bhutan".

Family Nymphalidae

A distinctive feature of butterflies of this family is the absence of thickened veins on their wide wings, which have variegated patterns. The wingspan of these butterflies is 55-130 mm. Among the most prominent representatives can be identified:

• day peacock butterfly,
• butterfly hives,
• mourning butterfly.

Hawkmoth family

This includes moths with narrow wings, the span of which is no more than 13 cm. Also, all butterflies of the hawkmoth family have a characteristic pattern, their abdomen is thickened and fusiform. The most famous among them are:

• "death's head" hawkmoth
• poplar hawk moth.

Stages of butterfly reproduction. Transformation of a caterpillar into a butterfly.

Among butterflies, there are very complex forms of courtship during the mating season, which are expressed in special flights and mating dances. And the mating process itself can last several hours. Moreover, females receive from the male not only sperm, but also the supply of micronutrients and proteins they need.

The life cycle of a butterfly consists of 4 stages:

Eggs

Like many other insects, a butterfly's life begins with an egg. Depending on the species, butterflies lay eggs on either plant branches. Typically there can be up to 1000 round or cylindrical fertilized eggs at a time. The butterfly egg stage lasts 8-15 days.

Caterpillar

From the eggs of butterflies, caterpillars emerge that have a gnawing type of mouthparts, with which they can eat plant leaves, flowers and fruits. Caterpillars have special glands that produce a special substance that hardens when it comes into contact with air. This substance forms a strong silk thread, which over time will become a cocoon.

Doll

Over time, the caterpillars begin to pupate, and the third stage of the butterfly's life cycle begins.

This is what the pupation of a caterpillar, its transformation into a pupa, looks like. The pupa can be elongated cylindrical or round in shape.

Imago (adult, butterfly)

At the last stage, an adult butterfly emerges from the pupa.

This is what the transformation of a pupa into a butterfly looks like.

The benefits and harms of butterflies

Butterflies can be both beneficial and harmful to agriculture. So, being in the caterpillar stage, they are plant pests; due to eating the leaves of fruit trees, the harvest deteriorates, or even is completely lost. On the contrary, adult butterflies bring great benefits, since they promote cross-pollination and self-pollination of many plants.

You can also separately highlight the silkworm, which is a producer of natural silk, which has been of great value since ancient times.

• Are butterflies dangerous for humans? No, but there is an exception, this is the Saturnius butterfly. It is true that it is not the butterfly itself that is dangerous, but its caterpillar, which secretes poisonous toxins that can even kill a person. (fortunately, such butterflies and caterpillars do not live in our latitudes).
• The migratory monarch butterfly is a true champion in endurance; it is capable of flying up to 1000 km at a time, without even stopping to rest.
• If the monarch butterfly is a champion in endurance, then hawk moths are real record holders in the insect world for speed; they can reach speeds of up to 60 km per hour over short distances.
• Butterflies do not sleep either at night or during the day, since they absolutely do not need sleep.

Butterflies are airy, weightless creatures familiar to many of us. Beautiful or not, they are all living proof of the amazingness of nature. Being born as caterpillars, they gain wings and fly away, only to later leave offspring in the form of caterpillars. Butterflies are amazing, and the diversity of their species can amaze anyone.

1. The smallest butterfly, acetosia, has a wingspan of only about 2 millimeters. The largest, Tizaniya agrippina, has up to 28 centimeters.
2. Butterflies, like elephants, feed using their trunk. More precisely, the proboscis (see).
3. In total, there are about 165 thousand species of butterflies and moths in the world. Yes, yes, exactly thousands! Moreover, most of them prefer to lead a nocturnal lifestyle.
4. Hawkmoths, night moths, can howl in a wolf-like manner. This howling buzzing mimics that of a queen bee, allowing the hawkmoth to easily enter the beehive and feast on honey, which makes up a fair share of its diet.
5. Butterflies are found on all continents except Antarctica (see).
6. A butterfly's eyes are made up of more than a thousand faceted elements each.
7. The receptors responsible for taste are located on the legs of butterflies.
8. Some species of butterflies lay more than a thousand eggs during their very short lives, from which caterpillars then hatch.
9. Many other species readily feed on butterflies, for example, birds and chameleons (see).
10. The northernmost butterflies live less than a thousand kilometers from the North Pole, on Canada's Queen Elizabeth Island.
11. In China, India and some countries of South America, the population does not hesitate to eat butterflies.
12. Some species of butterflies can reach speeds of over 60 km/h during flight, covering a distance equal to twenty to thirty thousand of their own body lengths in a minute of flight.
13. Most butterflies are afraid of water, but, for example, a lilac moth can calmly emerge if it accidentally falls into the water, shake itself off and fly on.
14. Monarch butterflies understand medicinal plants and know how to use them for medicinal purposes if their offspring need help.
15. Butterflies do not have an organ called a heart.
16. Butterflies distinguish only three colors - red, yellow and green.
17. There are also vampire butterflies that feed in the same way as mosquitoes do - calyptra eustrigata. However, only males feed on blood, while females prefer plant foods.
18. The skeleton of a butterfly, or rather the exoskeleton, is not inside its body, but outside. All internal organs are located inside it.
19. The cabbage butterfly is very prolific. If all the offspring of at least one cabbage tree survived, so many of its descendants would be born in a season that they would weigh three times more than all the people on Earth combined.
20. In China, butterflies are considered a symbol of love and lovers.

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 clearings. 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, located 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 by a peculiar frame consisting of thicker, darker and more elastic veins. The veins form a pattern of cells. The different groups of butterflies differ well in the length and direction of the veins and the shape of the cells. These features are used in more complete determinants.

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

The antennae of butterflies are very diverse. A large group of butterflies have thin, long antennae with a club-shaped extension at the very end. These butterflies are diurnal and are called club-whiskered or diurnal butterflies.

Another group of butterflies leads a crepuscular and nocturnal lifestyle. They are called moths. The structure of the antennae of moths is very diverse; most species have filamentous or feathery antennae. Males' antennae often have a more complex structure than females.

Daytime butterflies fly slowly and flutter, while nocturnal species are often distinguished by very fast flight.

Butterflies have large bulging eyes on their heads. The thoracic region of these insects is very well developed - it contains strong flight muscles. The abdomen is elongated; in females it is often very thick, as it can accommodate a large number of eggs. Butterflies have 3 pairs of well-developed legs, but in some species the front legs are shortened.

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

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

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

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

Butterflies are creatures of incredible beauty, quite fragile and light. They impress not only with their appearance, but also with the way they are born, proving the amazingness of the world around us. Being at first caterpillars, rather unpleasant in appearance, they then wrap themselves in a cocoon and are reborn into winged beauty, but, unfortunately, short-lived. We have collected interesting facts about butterflies, because they are capable of surprising not only with their color.

1. The smallest butterfly called acetosia has a wingspan of no more than 2 millimeters, and the largest one, Agrippina, is known for its wingspan of 30 centimeters.

2. An interesting fact about butterflies for kids is that, like elephants, these insects take in food through their trunk. They have it, of course, of minimal size and are barely noticeable.

3. Thanks to selection and the wonders of nature, there are at least 165 thousand different species of these insects on the planet.

4. Interesting fact about the swallowtail butterfly. Among all the others, she is the strongest and fastest, although now very rare. Swallowtail was once encountered even in Tibet at an altitude of 4.5 kilometers.

5. Hawkmoths, exclusively nocturnal moths, have an unusual ability. They can create a howl that vaguely resembles that of an animal. In fact, this buzzing allows them to temporarily pretend to be a queen bee and, having penetrated the hive, enjoy honey, which is their favorite food.

6. Butterflies sit on top of their food, because their main taste receptors are on their paws.

7. Among the most interesting facts about butterflies is their habitat. They, of course, do not live in Antarctica, because the conditions there are too harsh, but at the same time they somehow endure the harsh climate of the Canadian Queen Elizabeth Island, which is located less than one thousand kilometers from the North Pole.

8. Despite their very short life, from a couple of days to several weeks, moths sometimes manage to lay up to one thousand eggs, from which caterpillars will subsequently be born, and then moths again.

9. An interesting fact about the Apollo butterfly - it is the only one that can live in places where the snow sometimes does not melt all year round and still feel comfortable.

10. Most moths are afraid of water, because once they fall into it, they will not be able to get out. The voluminous wings get wet and do not allow them to take off again, but this does not apply to the lilac moth. Even having plunged completely, she is able to emerge and continue her flight.

11. Special types of these insects can successfully accelerate in flight to a speed of 60 km/h.

12. Monarch butterflies stand out among others for their ability to detect the medicinal properties of plants. Then they use this in life if their family needs help.

13. An interesting fact from the life of butterflies - some of them, like mosquitoes, can drink blood. Only the calyptra eustrigata has this feature; it is a rather rare species and, moreover, only males are vampires; females still prefer a plant diet.

14. Moths have some kind of skeleton. It is called an exoskeleton and is located not inside the body, as in the majority of living beings, but outside. All the organs of an insect are located inside it.

15. Butterflies do not have a heart, but the structure of their eyes allows them to see and distinguish three key colors - red, green and yellow.