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Butterflies are the most charismatic of our insects. We appreciate the artistry of their colors and patterns, and we are also captivated by their four-part life cycle, from egg, to larva, to pupa, to mature butterfly.
Butterflies are also stewards of the environment, pollinating flowers and food crops and providing meals for birds and other predators.
If you want to identify butterflies, your first step is learning to recognize certain plants. That’s because most butterflies have specific host plants where they lay their eggs. When the larvae emerge from the eggs—that would be the caterpillars—their favorite food is nearby.
Some caterpillars specialize on food crops, which makes them the nemesis of gardeners and farmers. But most of them enjoy plants that humans don’t want to eat. Monarch butterflies, which are also notable for their lengthy migrations, use milkweed as the host plant. The weed has a toxin doesn’t affect the caterpillars, but makes them unpalatable to predators—a terrific defense mechanism.
Because of their tendency to specialize on a single or a few kinds of plants for egg-laying purposes, butterflies are vulnerable to development pressure. When attractive weedlots become suburban lawns, butterfly populations can disappear. It is also believed that they are endangered by the use of pesticides, but less is known about this factor.
The presence or absence of butterflies can tell us a lot about the status of an ecosystem. If you’re interested in butterflies, investigate whether your state is conducting a butterfly census. Volunteers are helping scientists learn more about these winged creatures and about the health of our natural environment.
Web Links
North American Butterfly Association
http://www.naba.org/
Photo, taken on August 28, 2010, courtesy of Ed Gaillard via Flickr.