Hey guys I’m back. This week I’m going to be writing about the Black-veined White. I just choose this particular butterfly because of its very unique look. I also love black and white so I guess that could be another reason. I hope this information is enjoyable to read. The Black-veined White became extinct, for reasons that are unknown, in Britain during the 1920’s. Some believe it to be the cause of the destruction of the butterfly’s main food source: Blackthorn and Hawthorns. Others say that it’s because of the short mild winters that allow for many of the birds to stay around, which are the butterfly’s key predator. Many reintroductions have been put forth but all have failed. 
The Black-veined White would be found near orchards, hedgerows, and around the edges of woodlands. They are often found to be in groups of great numbers when roosting. The larvae eat off the fruit of the trees in orchards where the butterfly is found, while the adults feed on nectar. These butterflies need lots of water which they usually get from the ground. They are known to be the only butterfly to be all white and have all its veins marked in black with no other distinct markings. The males are usually the only ones that will have the dark black outlines and the females will have light to dark brown outlines. They are known to be relatively large butterflies with a wingspan of 60-70mm. The caterpillars of this species are often found to grow up to 4cm long. They are black with orange spots with white markings above their legs and long white hairs along their bodies. These caterpillars can survive through winters under the protection of their woven nests. That’s hard to believe that such a small little thing can survive such a cold winter.
Hey it’s me again! Last week I talked about the world’s largest butterfly, known as, the Queen Alexandra Birdwing. This week I will be talking about the world’s smallest butterfly! This little guy is called the Western Pygmy Blue. They can be found in the western United States. The Pygmy Blue is actually a very common butterfly but most people miss them because of their small size and low flight levels. They are known to be no bigger than 3/8in. The name of these little guys can lead you to think that they are blue when they really are not. They actually vary in shades of gray and brown. Some may appear to have a bluish tint. Along with these shades the wings of this butterfly are trimmed in white dashes, which can vary in thickness. The caterpillars are a pale green or a cream-white with yellow stripes along its body and brown bumps all over. Like most butterflies, the adult Western Pygmy Blues feed on nectar from flowers. The caterpillars of this species feed on plants like the Fourwing Saltbush. Males of this species stay near their host plants,where the female will lay her eggs, to find a receptive female. Once ready the female will lay the eggs on the upper side of the leaves. Any plants in the goosefoot family usually are always found to be the host for this species. You will see them in flight year round in South Texas and through the months of July to September in the north. Despite their little size, these butterflies actually migrate!!! How crazy is that?! They are so small it seems like if someone sneezed too hard it would blow them across the country! Well, I hope everyone enjoyed reading a little about this amazing little butterfly.
Hey yawl it’s me again! This week I’m going to be talking about the Queen Alexandra Birdwing butterfly. This is an extremely beautiful butterfly as well as the world’s largest butterfly. It’s known to be bigger than most birds that are found in the rainforest! How awesome is that?! Well i hope the information is enjoyable about this amazing butterfly!!! The wingspan of this butterfly can be up to 12 inches across, which is usually only said for the females. Go Girls! The females are always bigger than the males but always more dull in color. The females are usually dark with off white or yellow markings, while the eye catching males are mainly a pale blue, lavender, or yellow on black. The caterpillars of this butterfly eat a plant that is known to be toxic to humans and many other animals. After ingesting the plant the caterpillars become toxic to their predators. It takes the Alexandra up to four months to complete the four stages of its life. As an adult it can live up to three more months. 
They are found in the rainforests of Papua New Guinea. They spend all of their adult lives in that canopy of the rainforest. It is rare to see them near the ground of the rainforest. The population of this butterfly used to be in the thousands but because the clearing of rainforests is increasing for human living, farming, and the need for more oil pal, rubber, and cocoa plantations it has declined to only a few left existing. Because of the butterfly’s great size it is sought out by many collectors. The capture and mounting of these butterflies has also affected its numbers. We can only hope that something is put in effect, that works, to help save these amazingly beautiful and rare butterflies.
Hey guys! This week I’m going to be talking about the Mourning Cloak Butterfly! This butterfly, to me, is one of the most fascinating due to its ability to survive through the winter. I love the name of this one too, which refers to its resemblance to a traditional cloak worn when one was mourning the death of a loved one. Very unique i believe. Well I hope it's enjoy learning more about them! The Mourning Cloak butterfly can be identified by its short projections on both of its wings, which border irregular. The upper part of their wings is a purple-black color with a wide, bright yellow border and a row of iridescent blue spots along the inner part of the border. Their wing span is between 2 ¼- 4 inches. The Mourning Cloaks can live up to 10 months as an adult, which is a long life span for a butterfly. The mourning cloak caterpillar is velvety black with raised white spots and rows of red spots and long spines that form through the middle of their back. The Mourning Cloak caterpillar can grow to be as long as two inches. 
The Mourning Cloak is capable of surviving the cold of the winter through "cryo-preservation," a generic term for the various methods used by animals that have not evolved a migratory pattern and must therefore endure temperature extremes. Animals that are around during the winter usually have the most problems with the formation of ice on their bodies and in their body tissue which cause the animal to die. The Mourning Cloak doesn’t have this problem due to the chemicals that the butterfly secretes that act like an anti-freeze which therefore prevents ice formation.
Hey guys! As I’m sure everyone already noticed, I’m going to be talking about butterflies. I don’t know a whole lot about them but I absolutely love them so that’s why I choose to write about them. This is going to be a learning experience for the both of us when it comes to the information that is going to be on these blogs. There will always be a hyperlink on each blog that will go to the site that the information is on and has a lot more to learn about on a specific species of butterfly. Today I will be talking about the Black Swallowtail. The Black Swallowtail is well known for its black, almost dark purple, coloration. It often has yellow markings all along the outer parts of its wings, as well as some blue and red on is bottom wings. The wing span of this butterfly can get up to 4 ½ inches wide. A mature caterpillar can reach up to 2 inches in length and are identified by their black bands and yellow spots. They are normally are smooth and green with the identifying trademarks of a Black Swallowtail. 
The Black Swallowtail is known to mimic another butterfly called the Pipevine Swallowtail, which also has dark wings but they don’t have the yellow or red on the wings. By mimicking this butterfly the Black Swallowtail wards off its predators due to the nasty taste of the butterfly it mimics. As a caterpillar they would feed on carrot, parsley, dill, fennel, and Queen Anne’s lace. The caterpillar is very bad tasting to birds because of the toxins that they absorbed when eating these plants. They use a “Y” or “V” shaped odor dispenser behind their heads to also ward off predators. These caterpillars are also medically harmless to humans or animals.
Hey guys I’m back. This week I’m going to be writing about the Black-veined White. I just choose this particular butterfly because of its very unique look. I also love black and white so I guess that could be another reason. I hope this information is enjoyable to read. 
