Butterflies in their habitats
I am going to try and do something a little bit different in this blog; step back a bit and try to show butterflies in the habitats in which they … Continue Reading Butterflies in their habitats
Puddling, peeing and recycling in butterflies
Adult butterflies feed on a variety of fluids, including nectar, water, damp substrates (mud), rotting fruit, excrement and so on. The term ‘mud puddling’, or just puddling, is usually used … Continue Reading Puddling, peeing and recycling in butterflies
Something blue – butterfly wings
There are plenty of blue organisms in the world, but blue is nevertheless the rarest pigment found in nature. Most blue colours are produced by physical effects and are called structural colours. There … Continue Reading Something blue – butterfly wings
The eyes have it! Butterfly eyes and pseudopupils
When taking pictures of butterflies, especially when using a flash-gun or pop-up flash, a regular pattern of dark spots often appears in the compound eye. The dark spot near the … Continue Reading The eyes have it! Butterfly eyes and pseudopupils
Dots in spots: butterfly eyespots II. Tinbergen and the Grayling.
In a classic study, the pioneering Dutch ethologist, Niko Tinbergen, and his students famously studied the courtship behaviour of the Grayling butterfly, Hipparchia (=Satyrus) semele, at Hulshorst – a sandy … Continue Reading Dots in spots: butterfly eyespots II. Tinbergen and the Grayling.
Dots in spots: butterfly eyespots I. Conspicuousness or eye-mimicry?
An awful lot of research papers have been published on eyespots, but scientists still differ in their opinions about exactly how they function. They agree that eyespots intimidate or startle predators, … Continue Reading Dots in spots: butterfly eyespots I. Conspicuousness or eye-mimicry?
Butterfly love and the perils of mating!
Females butterflies are usually a lot more choosy than males. They produce eggs, and have more resources invested in each one; compared to the millions of tiny sperms that males … Continue Reading Butterfly love and the perils of mating!
Beetles taking off!
These beautiful dung beetles are relatively common in NW Spain, and can often be seen flying purposefully through the pine forests, like tiny green helicopters, on a mission to find … Continue Reading Beetles taking off!
Marsh Fritillaries, moos and meadows in Galicia, Spain
The Marsh Fritillary butterfly, Euphydryas aurinia, is distributed right across the Palaearctic region – from Ireland to Russia. It is a species complex, divided into mostly distinct taxa or subspecies, with slightly different appearances, … Continue Reading Marsh Fritillaries, moos and meadows in Galicia, Spain
Two hornet mimics and a new model!
I had the pleasure of coming across two large fly species in Spain this summer, both of which are thought to mimic the European hornet (Vespa crabro). They are both large and … Continue Reading Two hornet mimics and a new model!
Brimstones in the sun: thermoregulation
Whilst I was taking photographs of these beautiful Brimstone butterflies (Gonepteryx rhamni) nectaring on the little pink flower-pots of Bell heather (Erica cinerea), I noticed that they stopped when a … Continue Reading Brimstones in the sun: thermoregulation
Grasshopper jumps and lands in a spider’s web!
This is the story of a little grasshopper that landed in a spider’s web. I am sad to say, dear readers, that it jumped into the spider’s web to avoid … Continue Reading Grasshopper jumps and lands in a spider’s web!
Courtship and Mating in Wood Whites
When I first saw this pair of Wood white butterflies in Spain, I did not realise that they were mating, i.e. in copula, as they were at right angles to each … Continue Reading Courtship and Mating in Wood Whites
Mnais damselflies: fighters and sneaks!
Damselflies in the genus Mnais are unusual in having two types of males: i) orange-winged morphs and ii) clear or glassy- winged (hyaline) forms which look like the females. The orange-winged morphs … Continue Reading Mnais damselflies: fighters and sneaks!
False heads and fluffy tails!
Conventional wisdom has it that the ‘tails’ seen at the end of the hindwings of many butterflies, particularly lycaenids (the ‘blues’), are serving to mimic antennae, and together with eyespots … Continue Reading False heads and fluffy tails!
Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary: What’s in a spot?
Butterfly wings can serve a variety of different functions, enabling them to fly, hide, startle and fool predators, warm up, identify each other, and last but not least, choose mates. … Continue Reading Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary: What’s in a spot?
