Insects are amongst the most fabulous creations of nature. After all is there any non- human society as complex and as organized as the legendary termite or ant colony?And how many animals are as colorful as butterflies? The sheer diversity of insects is also minded boggling. Of the approximately 1.5 million known species of animals,plants and microbes on this earth,over 8,00,000 are insects and 1,40,000 are butterflies and moths.
Butterflies are perhaps the most conspicuous and colorful insects. Due to their attractiveness and omnipresence they have acquired a niche in the prose and poetry of various cultures. One can imagine that they may have been painted by artists of the heaven and sent to earth.
Most butterflies live on nectar from flowers but some butterflies sip on the liquid from rotting fruits and a rare few prefer rotting animal fluids. A butterfly's wings are covered with overlapping scales which provide color and form beautiful patterns. Some scales contain coloring matter also. Shiny,metallic colors are produced by reflecting light from their surfaces. As butterflies age, the color of wings fades.
I went for butterfly watching on early mornings and late evenings. I saw mostly the butterflies like common niggers, common Indian crow, common Jezebel,common evening brown, lemon pansy, blue pansy, Grey pansy, crimson rose, common rose, rustic etc.
I have identified the butterflies by referring to the book "The book of Indian Butterflies" By Mr. Isaac Kehimkar and "The Butterflies of Peninsular India" written by Dr. Krishnamegh Kunte, and learned a lot about the life of butterflies.At first when I observed the butterflies sitting on ground in groups, I was surprised why they are doing like this? But later on referring to the book mentioned above, I knew that it is to collect minerals and nitrogenous materials from ground.
Butterflies are perhaps the most conspicuous and colorful insects. Due to their attractiveness and omnipresence they have acquired a niche in the prose and poetry of various cultures. One can imagine that they may have been painted by artists of the heaven and sent to earth.
Most butterflies live on nectar from flowers but some butterflies sip on the liquid from rotting fruits and a rare few prefer rotting animal fluids. A butterfly's wings are covered with overlapping scales which provide color and form beautiful patterns. Some scales contain coloring matter also. Shiny,metallic colors are produced by reflecting light from their surfaces. As butterflies age, the color of wings fades.
I went for butterfly watching on early mornings and late evenings. I saw mostly the butterflies like common niggers, common Indian crow, common Jezebel,common evening brown, lemon pansy, blue pansy, Grey pansy, crimson rose, common rose, rustic etc.
I have identified the butterflies by referring to the book "The book of Indian Butterflies" By Mr. Isaac Kehimkar and "The Butterflies of Peninsular India" written by Dr. Krishnamegh Kunte, and learned a lot about the life of butterflies.At first when I observed the butterflies sitting on ground in groups, I was surprised why they are doing like this? But later on referring to the book mentioned above, I knew that it is to collect minerals and nitrogenous materials from ground.
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