What do butterflies eat in nature: interesting information

Many must have been at least once interested in what butterflies eat. How is the nutrition of these air creatures organized in nature? And what can you feed them if they are pets? Let’s try to figure it out.

What do butterflies eat in nature: interesting information

Как butterflies eat, if wild nature – their habitat?

• Speaking about what butterflies eat, the first thing to remember is nectar and pollen. This is indeed the most common food that these insects prefer in nature – it is most convenient for them to drink such a kind of cocktail. To the same category of food can be attributed rotting or overripe fruits, juice from trees. In a similar way, for example, Alexandra’s orniptoter, night butterflies feed. Moth hawks are gourmets at all – they regale themselves not just with nectar, but with full-fledged honey! To do this, they visit the bees, and quite often.
• Some butterflies eat even unexpected things. This is the sweat of animals or even humans, as well as urine, excrement of representatives of the fauna. Suitable for clay. Such a menu is due to the fact that all these things contain trace elements necessary for such butterflies. This refers to peacock butterflies, urticaria, for example. Urticaria are also known as “chocolate” – in fact, this is the name of the same insects.
• Some butterflies even drink turtle, crocodile tears! And the most real, without any figurative meanings. These are butterflies that live in the Amazon forests. Such insects are also called “vampires”. A certain category of butterflies even feed on the blood of animals!
• Cabbage, swallowtail and some other butterflies feed on plants, to the great chagrin of gardeners. The first of these, respectively, is cabbage, and the second is carrots, dill, fennel and other plants belonging to the umbrella family.
• And some of these insects even feed on those substances that were accumulated in the state of the caterpillar. This is the Madagascar comet, for example. She has no mouthparts at all. Life expectancy is short enough to use up all the nutrients and be left with nothing.

How to feed a butterfly at home conditions: useful tips

So, what if the butterfly is a pet?

• Topics butterflies that prefer fruit you can present overripe fruit. Butterflies of this type live in the forest – this is, for example, siproeta stelenes, morpho, caligo. Some of their owners cut into slices, but completely just enough to put in front overripe as a pet, as in nature, delicacy. Don’t worry about about how exactly the butterfly will to feast on them – for this she has proboscis, which she is quite capable of pierce overripe fruit. Wonderful fit bananas, grapefruits, kiwi, oranges, mango, passion fruit. Feeder can be done once a day, although it is better for the butterfly to have a meal twice a day. The latter is especially true in winter. and in autumn when to stock up on nutrients substances especially diligently.
• С those butterflies that live on meadows and steppes – this is demoley, a sailboat, graphium, etc. – things are a bit more difficult. They love nectar, and the owner you have to create it, of course. on one’s own. A cup of water will require stir about 2 or 3 tsp. Sahara or fructose, honey. Mix until as long as impromptu nectar doesn’t melt at all. Then the nectar is needed pour in a saucer, and a butterfly – carefully feed.
• The most important – take the insect very carefully, because butterflies are incredibly fragile. It is advisable to take them under the wings so that it turns out to pinch the insect between index and middle fingers. Having fixed the butterfly in this way, you need to bring her to the saucer, gently unfolding the proboscis. You can turn it around with your finger and something thin like a toothpick. The proboscis is located at the bottom of the head under the mustache. After the proboscis hit the saucer, the insect starts to drink and you can let it go.
• Как How long do you keep the food bowl? Can half an hour after the butterfly has eaten. It is possible that she will return later. refresh yourself.
• It is worth it is possible to clean and wash fruits? Extremely desirable, because often they are processed various chemicals that accumulate in the skin. And for insects it can be very harmful.

butterflies, As you know, they don’t last long. But if they eat right, they can live longer than statistics show average. And even though these insects are quite distinctive pets, keep them at home conditions are actually not so difficult. We hope that our recommendations for feeding will help with this. And the rest readers just broaden their horizons.