The Butterflies of North America. Doubleday, New York. Miller, L. Memoirs of the Lepidopterists' Society 2: Miller, J. The common names of North American Butterflies. Smithsonian Press, Washington, D. Opler, P. Butterflies of Eastern North America and Greenland. Houghton Mifflin, Boston. Pyle, R. Alfred A. Knopf, New York. BugInfo Butterflies in the United States. Numbers of Species There are approximately species of butterflies in the United States. Lycaenidae Blues and Hairstreaks Most butterflies of this family are relatively small and sometimes quite colorful.
Nymphalidae Brush-footed Butterflies The families Danaidae, Heliconiidae, Libytheidae and Satyridae, which are sometimes considered separate families in popular books, are included in the family Nymphalidae. The wingspan of most full-grown monarch butterflies reaches around 5 inches while the average is usually 4 inches. The upper side of the wings of these butterflies is a tawny orange shade with black margins that are followed by a series of white spots.
The color and shape of their wings changes at the start of the migration process and turns into a red shade with a more elongated shape as compared to the later migrants. The monarch butterflies ideally go through a series of four stages as a part of their lifecycle and a series of four generations in a single year.
This is a small, delicate butterfly that is considered to be an endangered sub-species of the small blue butterfly. Back in the days, Karner blue butterflies were abundantly found on the northern edge of the blue lupine range that extends from Southern Maine all the way to eastern Minnesota.
In recent times, however, they are greatly found in large numbers in a few areas of western and central Wisconsin, as well as some parts of western Michigan. These butterflies are fairly small with their wingspan only growing to an average of one inch in both males and females; however, both are different appearances.
The female Karner blue sports a grayish brown shade with hints of blue on the topside and orange colored bands contained within narrow black borders.
The male Karner blue, on the other hand, has silvery or dark blue topside coupled with narrow black margins. However, their populations went back to being stable during the last couple of years. As the name suggests, the wings of the Blue Morpho butterfly are a stunning vibrant blue with jet black edges. Like many other species, this one also constitutes as some of the largest butterflies in the world, primarily because the size of their wingspan ranges from inches.
These butterflies have microscopic scales of the back of their wings that basically reflect light and are also why they sport the characteristic sparkling blue color. In contrast, the underside of the wings sports a dull, pale brown color that helps them camouflage against harm and predators. Blue Morpho butterflies are native to tropical forests of Columbia, Latin America, and Mexico, and the adult blue morphos are usually found on forest floors, in lower shrubs and trees.
Their diet also changes radically as they move from one phase of their lifecycle to the other. As caterpillars, they love eating different varieties of leaves, and once they transform into full-grown butterflies, they prefer fruits and other similar foods.
This butterfly belongs to the family Hesperiidae and sub-family Hesperiinae. The wingspan of these butterflies normally ranges from 2. Although they are very similar in appearance to the small skipper butterfly, one feature that sets them apart is undersides of the tips on their antennae. Their antennae are a dark black while those of the smaller skipper are bright orange in color.
The European skipper butterfly has originated from Southern Scandinavia, and its population ranges all the way through Europe to central Asia and North Africa.
The exterior of these butterflies is a pretty orange with thin black margins and hints of white throughout the upper and lower wings. Some of its species are also found in Florida and in the Gulf states. Their habitat typically ranges from sunny glades, open woodlands, grooves, forest borders, garden, and parks. The wingspan of these butterflies grows to an average of 2.
Once these butterflies transform into full-grown adults, they adopt several distinctive special markings that set them apart from a variety of other butterflies. Also known as the American lady , this butterfly is largely found throughout the whole of North America. While these species are popular for their stunning appearance, they are most-wanted among naturalists because of the unique nests made by its caterpillars that are truly characteristic of this species only.
Some species of the American Painted Lady butterfly are also found in Southern Canada and occasionally in Europe, too. They differ from other insects also by their ability to coil up their proboscis. Caterpillars are the names given to the larvae of both butterflies and moths.
They are usually very distinctive, and in some cases may be identified more easily than the adults. When they are developing, their skin may be shed four or more times, with each molt often changing the coloration and appearance of the caterpillar. They eat voraciously to transform plant material into tissues that they will need for metamorphosis. Plant associations. Butterflies are commonly associated with plants, and the relationship is sometimes complex. Immatures, with few exceptions, eat plants, and therefore may be considered harmful to the plants.
However, butterflies are very important to many plants that are dependent upon flower-visiting insects for cross-pollination. Most butterfly caterpillars eat one, or sometimes several, related species of plants. Usually the choice is made by the adult female when depositing eggs.
Adults usually feed on nectar from flowers of plants, although many butterflies feed instead on rotting fruit, dung, etc. Butterfly migration is best exemplified by the Monarch, which is widely known to migrate in the fall to overwintering sites in California and Mexico. But in the United States, several other butterfly species engage in lesser migration distances. Wing colors in butterflies appear in two types, pigment and structural, frequently combined in one individual.
Pigment colors are familiar in paints, dyes, and inks, and are defined as specific substances with definite chemical composition. Structural colors are instead produced in a physical manner, similar to a rainbow. Morpho butterflies are the usual example of butterflies with structural color. The vision of butterflies appears to be excellent, especially within short distances. They are able to fly with precision in areas of many obstacles. Mating Behavior.
Females are usually able to engage in mating on the day of emergence, but males do not normally mate for several days. Courtship rituals vary widely among species. Butterflies are currently, with some arguments, placed into the following six families:. Known as "Skippers," containing relatively small, fast-flying species. About 3, worldwide species. Blues, Hairstreaks and Coppers.
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