Eating HabitsFeeding is the main activity for caterpillars—they feed

on leaves or other plant parts all day long. Adult butterflies,on the other hand, do not eat at all—they only drink.Butterflies drink nectar from flowers, juice from rotten fruit,or even sweat from animals.

They use a long, straw-like tongue, called a proboscis(pro-BAH-sis), to suck up the juices.

HabitatThe kinds of butterflies you will find varies greatly from

place to place. Most butterflies are picky eatersx—they feed on only

certain plants or only one kind of plant. Since most plants can’t grow everywhere, the butterflies

must stay where the plants are. Plants require certain habi-tats to thrive, depending on things like temperature, amountof sunlight, amount of rainfall, soil type and wind.

Weird AnatomyButterflies smell with their antennae and taste with their

feet! Before laying its eggs, a butterfly first “tastes” the plant

with its feet to make sure it’s the right kind for caterpillarlarva to feed on.

Butterflies have compound eyes, like other insects. Somebutterflies’ eyes are like bifocals—the arearight in front of them is magni-fied so they can see up close.

Life CycleThe butterfly life cycle follows

the four stages of complete metamorphosis (discussed earlierin this supplement): egg, larva (caterpillar), pupa and adult.

The female butterfly lays her eggs onleaves of plants that will provide food for thecaterpillars once they hatch.

A caterpillar will eat and eat until it outgrows itsown skin— four to six times as it grows. The nextstage, the pupa stage, is when the caterpillar trans-forms into an adult. A butterfly’s pupa is called achrysalis. Inside this sac, chemicals work to breakdown the caterpillar body and create the butterfly body.

Protect the ButterflyUnfortunately, many butterfly species are endangered or

threatened due to destruction of the areas where they live.You can help by planting wildflowers for butterflies and

host plants for caterpillars. Garden shops, county extensionoffices and books can help you figure out which flowersand plants attract butterflies in your area.8 9

butterflies andmoths

Where Did Butterflies Get Their Name?The English word “butterfly” is very old, and we’re not

really sure where it comes from. One story is that butterflieswere named after crafty witches who were believed to taketheir shape, fly into villagers’ homes and steal milk and but-ter. In other languages, the name for this insect has nothingto do with butter.

Why the Great Colors?Butterflies have bright, beautiful colors. But what does

color do for them?As with many creatures, colors give butterflies camouflage

(CAM-o-flaj). Camouflage is the ability to blend into the sur-roundings. Certain color patterns on their wings help butter-flies and moths blend into the background of flowers andplants, so predators can’t see them.

Another reason for colors is mating. When butterflies arecourting, colors help males and females of the same speciesfind each other. A blue butterfly will look for another bluebutterfly, orange will look for orange, etc.

Color is also helpful for protection. Certain brightly coloredbutterflies, like monarchs, taste bad to birds and otherpredators. Bright wings are like a big flag that says “I tastebad, stay away.” Other butterflies and moths that might tasteperfectly fine to birds have colors that look like, or “mimic”,the bad-tasting species. As a result, predators stay awayfrom them, too!

The Gift of FlightMonarch butterflies are famous for their fall migration.

They migrate thousands of miles from Canada and thenorthern United States to Mexico.

As amazing as it sounds, migrating Monarchs have beenseen flying as high as 1,000 feet—past tall buildings like the

Empire State Building. Butterflies fly with the help of scales on their wings

that are similar to feathers on a bird.These scales are deli-

cate and could beeasily damagedthrough humanhandling. So be

careful touchingbutterflies. Butterfly wings

work best when they are “warmed up,” like an

engine. On cool days, butter-flies bask in the sun to absorb

heat so they can fly.

Some of the world’s most beautiful insects are butterfliesand moths.

There are 150,000 known species of butterflies andmoths.

These winged creatures, and the caterpillars they start out as, come in all sorts of colors and sizes.

The Atlas moth is as big as a dinner plate! The Westernpygmy blue butterfly is not much wider than your thumb!

Butterflies and moths belong to the insect orderLepidoptera. (LEP-id-OP-ter-a).

Butterflies vs. Moths... What’s the Difference?

There is a fine line between what can becalled a “butterfly” and what can be called a “moth.” But in general, these are helpfulclues:• Butterflies fly during the day, but moths

fly at night.• Butterflies have knobs or clubs on the ends

of their antennae, while moths do not.• Butterflies have smooth, slender bodies;

moths are plump and fuzzy.• Butterflies rest with their wings held

together, straight up in the air, whilemoths spread them apart and to the sides.

• Butterflies are often brightly colored; mothsare often shades of brown and other “earthtones.”

A moth encloses its pupa in a silkcocoon, spun from glands like a spider’s.