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There are approximately 170,000 different species of Butterflies and Moths in the order, Lepidoptera. Of those, about 24,000 are butterflies. Lepidoptera is derived from the Ancient Greek, which means scale wing. Which is a perfect description for the varied and colorful wings of the many species.
Butterflies go through a four-stage life. They start from an egg to a caterpillar to pupa to adult. Most caterpillars are herbivores but some are carnivores (eat ants and other caterpillars). Bet you didn’t know that!
The male adults may have larger antennae than the females. The adult mouthparts are called the proboscis, which is adapted for sucking nectar, which is the food source for most butterfly species. The proboscis can be described as a straw that is rolled up when not in use. However, the adults of some species of butterflies don’t feed as adults so nature made their proboscis very small.
The earliest fossils that have been found of Butterflies are from 190 million years ago. As you might imagine, the fossils of butterflies are very rare because of their soft body parts. They are usually found trapped inside of ancient tree sap or ember.
Butterflies can range in size from a tiny 1/8 inch to a huge almost 12 inches. The lifespan of most adults is only one to two weeks! And they say that butterflies can see in green, yellow and red. Which might explain why flowers are so brilliant in colors and hues.
The transformation of the lowly and ugly caterpillar into a graceful and gorgeous butterfly is truly a miracle of nature!
The idea that the striking and beautiful butterflies emerge after living as an ugly and lowly caterpillar has lead to a mythical Greek beauty named Psych who had the wings of a butterfly. In fact, the ancient Greek word, Psych means both butterfly and the human soul.
The belief is that the suffering of the human soul, which is preparing for the enjoyment of true and pure happiness, is similar with the emergence of butterflies from a pupa and their fluttering about the flowers, feeding on the fragrant nectars.
The wide variety of colors and varied patterns has made the Butterfly tattoos one of the top five requests made by women at tattoo parlors. And no wonder! Butterfly tattoos are steeped in mythology and ancient civilization’s fascination of change.
