Observation of the Week: August 5- 11, 2023

What do you call a butterfly with no wings? A caterpillar! 😊

For our 14th OOTW, we have a butterfly with fewer wings than normal. The intriguing observation made by Ashley (@ladyluckunexposed) caught our attention - a Monarch butterfly with most of its left forewing missing. This butterfly serves as a living example of the resilience and adaptability of these remarkable insects.

It is not uncommon for butterflies to encounter challenges that result in damaged or missing wings. This can include predation, injuries, or deformities that occur during development. Some amount of wing damage occurs over the life span of all butterflies – you can tell that a worn and faded butterfly has probably been around for a while.

Scientists have studied the location and effects of wing damage on butterflies with eyespots to test the false head hypothesis. This is the idea that some butterflies use wing spots to trick predators into thinking that their wings are actually their heads. Because losing a piece of your wing is much less serious than losing your head!

This Monarch butterfly will be likely be able to lead a normal life even with so much of its wing missing. Butterflies use their wings for flying but rely on other adaptations such as their antennae and legs for survival. With its remaining wings intact, this butterfly will still be able to navigate, visit flowers to feed, and even reproduce.

This encounter of a Monarch with a missing patch reminds me to appreciate the resilience of these delicate creatures that grace our lives and inspire my admiration for butterflies!

Have you ever encountered a butterfly that is missing a part of its wing? Let us know in the comments.

Contest Alert!

Don’t miss the Butterfly Blitz Bingo Challenge! If you’ve ever played Bingo, you already know what to do. Use your iNaturalist observations to complete one row on the Bingo card below. You may already have all the observations you need for a row, or maybe you just need one more … check it out!

The challenge will run from July 1 to September 13! Here is how to participate:

1. Enroll in the 2023 Butterfly Blitz.
2. Join the 2023 Butterfly Blitz project on iNaturalist.
3. Complete a Butterfly Blitz Bingo row, column, or diagonal line and fill out this form (https://www.cvc.ca/ButterflyBingoForm) to be entered into a draw to win an Individual Credit Valley Annual Parks Pass. Complete Contest Rules.

Happy butterflying,
Brittany and the Butterfly Blitz team

This week’s OOTW was written by Brittany Stoneman (@b_stoneman), Program Assistant, Community Outreach at Credit Valley Conservation.

Posted on August 16, 2023 08:10 PM by lltimms