The most beautiful insects in the world are, without a doubt, butterflies. These fragile creatures invariably make you admire them. Hundreds of species of all shapes, sizes and colors adorn our planet. One of the most prominent representatives of this species is the butterfly Admiral. It belongs to the family Nymphalidae.
The insect was discovered by the Swedish natural scientist Karl Linnaeus. He named this species of Atalanta butterflies in honor of the daughter of Schehenei, a mythological hero famous for his fast running and extraordinary beauty. This beautiful butterfly received its name from the wide red stripes located on its wings. Admirals of the Russian fleet wore the same bright stripes on their trousers. Butterfly Admiral is found in northern America, in Africa, New Zealand, on the islands of the Atlantic Ocean, in Guatemala and Eurasia.
Butterfly Admiral, the description of which can be found in numerous directories, is unusually beautiful. Her wings are up to six centimeters wide. They themselves are black. In addition to red stripes, white spots are scattered on the wings, like stars. These fragile at first glance wings can carry a butterfly over long distances.
Butterfly Admiral is a very active migrant. These insects travel in large flocks. Their path lies from Europe to Africa. There they lay their eggs and die. After some time, caterpillars emerge from the eggs. They look to match their adult relatives: white, black, red, green with yellow dots, stripes and spikes. They live on thistles and nettles and feed on these same plants. Caterpillars, unlike butterflies, live apart. They crawl into folded nettle leaves, and pupate in the same place. As a rule, butterflies from pupae are hatched by the end of July. They feed on the fruits and sap of trees, as well as the sweet nectar of flowers. They have a fairly long, spiral-shaped proboscis. They get butterflies nectar and plant food, which is not available to other insects.
Most butterflies born in the second half of summer go south in the fall, where they breed, and then die.
Young individuals return to their homeland. Now they have to overcome such a difficult and distant path in solitude. It is hard to imagine how a small, fragile butterfly Admiral can fly to the right place. Many die on the way.
Some butterflies prefer not to fly away for the winter. In this case, they fly until the fall, and in some cases to frost. From the winter cold they are saved by the bark of trees, deep crevices where the cold does not penetrate. With the arrival of spring and warmth, butterflies get out of their shelter. Sun-insects flutter at the edges of the forest, protected from the wind. Occasionally, this amazing butterfly can be found in a flourishing meadow.
Butterfly Admiral, whose photo is the subject of pride of any collector, as a rule, settles in orchards. They can be found in abundance there in the second half of summer. They whirl in the air, play and feast on overripe fruits.
A distinctive feature of butterflies is their love for warm stones. They can sit on them for quite some time.
