Multilayer structures are known to produce vivid iridescent colouration in many butterflies. Morpho butterflies are well known for their high reflectance, which appears to remain high over a wide range of viewing angles. Thus these butterflies have served as the inspiration for sensing materials. Using microscopic images and videos, we visually demonstrate that the colour response with ambient ...

The physical concept of quantum entanglement is brought to the biological domain. We simulate the cooperation of two insects by hypothesizing that they share a large number of quantum entangled spin-12 particles. Each of them makes measurements on these particles to decide whether to execute certain actions. In the first example, two ants must push a pebble, which may be too heavy for one ant. ...

Butterflies in the family Lycaenidae that have obligate associations with ants frequently exhibit ant-dependent egg laying behaviour. In a series of field and laboratory choice tests, we assessed oviposition preference of the Australian lycaenid Jalmenus evagoras in response to different species and populations of ants. Females discriminated between attendant and nonattendant ant species, betwe...

Monarch butterflies can be infected by a parasite called OE. Butterflies with OE may not complete their development or, if they do, the adult might have deformed wings. We found that proportion of wing deformities increased further south in New Zealand, where weather is colder. In contrast, number decreased to south. No was observed from coldest, southernmost location Dunedin, while all butterf...

North American monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) undergo a spectacular fall migration. In contrast to summer butterflies, migrants are juvenile hormone (JH) deficient, which leads to reproductive diapause and increased longevity. Migrants also utilize time-compensated sun compass orientation to help them navigate to their overwintering grounds. Here, we describe a brain expressed sequence ...

In order to contribute to the butterflies' biodiversity knowledge at Serra do Intendente State Park - Minas Gerais, a study based on collections using Van Someren-Rydon traps and active search was performed. In this study, a total of 395 butterflies were collected, of which 327 were identified to species or morphospecies. 263 specimens were collected by the traps and 64 were collected using ent...

Mountains provide an opportunity to examine changes in biodiversity across environmental gradients and areas of transition (ecotones). Mountain ecotones separate vegetation belts. Here, we aimed to examine whether transition areas for birds and butterflies spatially correspond with ecotones between three previously described altitudinal vegetation belts on Mt. Hermon, northern Israel. These inc...

We characterize allelic and gene expression variation between populations of the Glanville fritillary butterfly (Melitaea cinxia) from two fragmented and two continuous landscapes in northern Europe. The populations exhibit significant differences in their life history traits, e.g. butterflies from fragmented landscapes have higher flight metabolic rate and dispersal rate in the field, and high...

Visual cues are important for insects to find flowers and host plants. It has been proposed that the diversity of leaf shape in Passiflora vines could be a result of negative frequency dependent selection driven by visual searching behavior among their butterfly herbivores. Here we tested the hypothesis thatHeliconius butterflies use leaf shape as a cue to initiate approach toward a host plant....

Pollen feeding behaviors Heliconius and Laparus (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) represent a key innovation that has shaped other life history traits of these neotropical butterflies. Although all flower visiting Lepidoptera regularly come in contact with pollen, only Heliconius and Laparus butterflies actively collect pollen with the proboscis and subsequently take up nutrients from the pollen grain...