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Butterflies interesting facts for kids. We tell children about butterflies. Butterflies and traditions of different nations

Butterflies are probably the most beautiful insects. Butterflies have always been a symbol of love, beauty, purity and joy. It is impossible to imagine how these nondescript caterpillars appear lovely creation. Well, let's not get into the lyrics, but just look at the 15 most interesting facts about butterflies.

So, the most interesting facts about butterflies:

Lepidopterology- a science that studies only butterflies.

butterfly eye consists of more than 6000 parts, therefore it is a very complex organ, despite its diminutiveness.
butterflies - very diverse and beautiful insects. Because of this, butterflies have become a collector's item. Moreover, butterflies are one of the most popular collectibles. The collection of butterflies of Vladimir Nabokov was as much as 4324 species! Moreover, he opened 20 of them himself. He later donated this collection to the Zoological Museum of the University of Lausanne.
Majority butterflies have a very short lifespan- only a few days, but as usual there are exceptions: the life of the Brixton butterfly can be about 10 months.

There are some types of butterflies that do not eat at all. That is, do not eat being butterflies. They live only off the food that accumulated in them when they were still caterpillars.
Various Butterfly species can eat different types of food. some butterflies like to eat manure or rotten fruit, some love wool, some wax, and some even like to eat animal tears.
There are cases when the caterpillar does not have time to turn into a butterfly in one summer, then it hibernates until the next summer.
Butterflies do not have ears or other organs of hearing, but they can sense everything through vibrations.
In many Asian countries love to eat butterflies, along with other insects.
Butterflies have taste buds on their feet. so they trample on their food when they eat.
In Russia, it was assumed that when a sorceress or witch dies, then her soul is transmigrated into a butterfly. It was this fact that gave the name to this insect, i.e. from the word "baba".
Butterflies Calyptra eustrigata do not feed on nectar. They suck the blood of animals, digging in with a sharp proboscis, like mosquitoes.

Butterflies are wonderful creatures!

Despite their short lifespan, Butterflies have time to lay about 1000 eggs.
Butterflies never sleep.
The smallest butterfly in the world is the blue dwarf. The wingspan is no more than 1.5 cm. And the largest butterfly in the world is the night Attacus altas. Its wingspan is as much as 30 cm, so it is often confused with a bird.

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

The shape and wingspan of butterflies of different species 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 is a butterfly with the largest wingspan of all known species of 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 (Australian facts).
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 is the Maak sailboat (wingspan up to 13.5 cm), and the night one is the large nocturnal peacock eye (up to 15 cm).
Some butterflies, such as peacock-eyes or clothes moths, do not eat at all - in adulthood they use up the nutrients accumulated during 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 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 a short life - only a few days. However, there are specimens with a rather long life cycle: the Brixton butterfly is a long-liver, 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 the tropical zone of Asia and Australia, the length of the front wing is 6 mm. This is the smallest butterfly in the world.

In addition to the tropical butterflies familiar to us, there are also 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.

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. Due to its original pattern, it is difficult to confuse it with any other: the upper part of the wing has a cherry-brown color and a spot in the form of an eye, which is characteristic of this species, while the bottom is completely black-brown.

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 is the 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 the tropical forests of the New and Old Worlds, there is a species of butterfly whose males 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 in 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.

Order BUTTERFLY (Lepidoptera) or Lepidoptera. Of all insects, butterflies are the most famous. There is hardly a person in the world who would not admire them in the same way as they admire beautiful flowers. No wonder in ancient Rome they believed that butterflies came from flowers that had come off plants. In all corners of the world, there are butterfly collectors with as much passion as other collectors of art. The beauty of a butterfly is in its wings, in their various colors. At the same time, the wings are the most important systematic feature of the detachment: they are covered with scales, the structure and location of which determine the bizarre coloration. Therefore, butterflies are called Lepidoptera. Scales are modified hairs. This is easy to see if you carefully examine the scaly cover of the Apollo butterfly (Parnassius apollo). Along the edge of the wing there are very narrow scales, almost hairs, closer to the middle they are expanded, but their ends are sharp, and, finally, even closer to the base of the wing, there are wide scales in the form of a flattened, hollow pouch attached to the wing by means of a thin short stalk. The scales are arranged on the wing in regular rows across the wing: the ends of the scales face the lateral margin of the wing, and their bases are covered in a tiled manner by the ends of the previous row. The color of the scale depends on the pigment grains in it; its outer surface is ribbed. In addition to such pigmented scales, many species, especially tropical ones, whose wings are distinguished by iridescent metallic coloration, have scales of a different type - optical. There is no pigment in such flakes, and the characteristic metallic coloration arises due to the decomposition of the white sunbeam into separate colored rays of the spectrum when it passes through optical flakes. This decomposition of the rays is achieved by their refraction in the sculpture of the scales, which causes a change in color when the direction in which the rays fall is changed. Of particular interest are the odorous scales, or androconia, found predominantly in males of certain species of butterflies. These are modified scales or hairs associated with special glands that secrete an odorous secret. Androconia are located on different parts of the body - on the legs, wings, on the abdomen. The smell they spread serves as a bait for the female, thus ensuring the convergence of the sexes; often it is pleasant, reminiscent in some cases of the aroma of vanilla, mignonette, strawberry, etc., but sometimes it can also be unpleasant, such as the smell of mold. It should be emphasized that for each species of butterflies, both the shape and the optical and chemical properties of the scales on the wings are characteristic. In rare cases, the scales on the wings are absent, and then the wings appear completely transparent, as is the case with glass cases.

Usually, all four wings are developed in Lepidoptera; however, in females of some species, wings may be underdeveloped or absent altogether. The forewings are always larger than the hindwings. In many species, both pairs of wings interlock with each other with the help of a special hook, or "bridle", which is a chitinous bristle or a bundle of hairs, attached at one end to the upper side of the anterior edge of the hind wing, and with the other end included in a pocket-like appendage on the underside of the anterior wing. wing. There may be other forms of scoring mechanisms connecting the front and rear fenders. No less characteristic feature than the structure of the wings and the scales covering them are the mouth organs of butterflies. In the vast majority of cases, they are represented by a soft proboscis that can coil and unfold like a clock spring. The basis of this oral apparatus is made up of strongly elongated inner lobes of the lower jaws, which form the flaps of the proboscis. The upper jaws are absent or represented by small tubercles; The lower lip also underwent a strong reduction, although its palps are well developed and consist of 3 segments. The proboscis of a butterfly is very elastic and mobile; it is perfectly adapted to feeding on liquid food, which in most cases is the nectar of flowers. The length of the proboscis of one or another species usually corresponds to the depth of the nectar in those flowers that the butterflies visit. So, in Madagascar, one interesting orchid (Angraecum sesquipedale) grows with a corolla depth of 25-30 cm. aphid excrement and other sugary substances. In some butterflies that do not feed, the proboscis may be underdeveloped or completely absent (fineworms, some moths, etc.).

The science of butterflies is called lepidopterology.

Butterflies have long attracted the attention of man. Not only can they, without a doubt, be considered the most beautiful insects, but they also go through a stage of transformation, turning from a caterpillar into a charming winged creature. In the ancient world, many treatises were written on this subject, bordering on mysticism, but modern science defines everything much drier. Butterflies are classified as the genus Arthropoda, class Insecta (insects), order Lepidoptera (lepidoptera). True butterflies form the superfamily Papilionoidea, and fatheads form the superfamily Hesperoidae,” we can read in the encyclopedia.

Butterflies are a large group of insects that can be found everywhere in any region of the world. Together with moths, they make up the order Lepidoptera (Scaly-winged). There are about 12 families of butterflies. Many adult moths and butterflies feed on the nectar they suck from flowers. In the process of feeding, they can transfer pollen from one flower to another - thus, many plants depend on moths and butterflies for pollination. Like moths, butterflies have elongated sucking mouths and two pairs of wings that function as one pair. Their wings are covered with scales, which are shaken off in the form of dust if the butterfly is touched.

Butterflies are an evolutionary branch of moths. Their origin can be dated back to the Cretaceous period, which ended 65 million years ago. The earliest evidence for the possible existence of butterflies (most likely fatheads) dates back to 57 million years ago, and was found in modern Denmark. Natural flowers. Fragile and beautiful creatures, personifying the boundless fantasy of nature - butterflies. A riot of colors or a stingy, almost monochrome aesthetic with small strokes of the master, very tiny and larger palms of an adult are different. The perfection and uniqueness of wildlife, our world is reflected in the drawings of butterfly wings.

Butterflies are a large group of insects that can be found anywhere in the world. Together with moths, they make up the order Lepidoptera (Scaly-winged). In total, there are about 12 families of butterflies. Many adult moths and butterflies feed on the nectar they collect from flowers. In the process of feeding, they can transfer pollen from one flower to another - thus, many plants depend on moths and butterflies for pollination. Like moths, butterflies have elongated sucking mouths and two pairs of wings that function as one pair. Their wings are covered with scales, which are shaken off in the form of dust if the butterfly is touched.

Butterflies can be distinguished from moths in several ways: the antennae of butterflies are bent at the tips, while in moths the antennae almost never have significant bends, but are almost always fluffy. The body of butterflies is usually thinner and more slender than that of a moth. Butterflies are active mainly during the day, and moths are nocturnal insects. While resting, most butterflies hold their wings upright, most moths, on the contrary, lay them out on the surface where they decide to stop. The boundary position between these two types of insects is held by fatheads, but they are also called butterflies. Some butterflies migrate, usually moving towards the equator in spring and away from it in autumn. Monarch butterflies in general can migrate thousands of kilometers from their place of residence.

Lepidoptera, especially butterflies, are well known for their beautiful coloration and wing patterns. Red, yellow, black and white pigments are found in their scales. Blue, green and metallic and iridescent hues are found in tropical species - this is mainly due to refraction. The fact is that the first group of pigments is contained directly in miniature scales, and the second forms ... human vision. You can often notice that the shade, and even the color of the wings of a butterfly depends on the angle at which we look at it. Here blue, green and iridescent shades are nothing more than a special arrangement of scales on the wing. Some butterflies are camouflaged to match the color of their environment and hide easily in it. Many brightly colored butterflies are inedible to birds, which in turn avoid them, and other butterflies are saved by trying to appear inedible. Among the most beautiful butterflies is undoubtedly the peacock eye. You can see it all over the world, as well as monarchs, swallowtails and vanessas.
Butterflies are an evolutionary branch of moths. Their origin can be dated back to the Cretaceous period, which ended 65 million years ago. The earliest evidence for the possible existence of butterflies (most likely fatheads) dates back to a period of 57 million years ago, and was found in modern Denmark

Butterflies are creatures of incredible beauty, rather 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 a winged beauty, but, unfortunately, short-lived. We have collected interesting facts about butterflies, because they are able to surprise not only with their color.

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

2. An interesting fact about butterflies for children is that, like elephants, these insects take food through the 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 165,000 different species of these insects on the planet.

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

5. Hawk hawks have an unusual ability - exclusively nocturnal moths. They can create a howl, vaguely reminiscent of an animal. In fact, this buzzing allows them to pretend for a while 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. Of course, they 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 less than one thousand kilometers from the North Pole.

8. Despite their 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 is that 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 of the moths are afraid of water, because once they get into it, they will not be able to get out. Volumetric wings get wet and do not allow to take off again, but this does not apply to the lilac moth. Even having plunged entirely, she is able to emerge and continue her flight.

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

12. Monarch butterflies stand out among the rest for their ability to determine the medicinal properties of plants. After they use it 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, a rather rare species, has such a feature, and besides, only males are vampires in it, females still prefer a plant-based diet.

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