Have you been paying attention to your surroundings? Notice anything different? I see lots more butterflies fluttering about. Could it be the start of Butterfly Season?
The yellow butterfly we’re lately seeing more of is called a Great Southern White, which is a common butterfly. It is the most noticeable on the island. These butterflies are here year-round, and breed year-round, but all of the rain has provided lots of nice green leaves for the caterpillars to eat, resulting in a bigger butterfly population.
Sometimes in December and January, their numbers are really big, and the groups of butterflies that form around flowering plants (where they like to feed on sweet nectar) are called “Caribbean Snow”.
What can you observe?
Take a look outside; what do you notice? It can be fun to write down what you see, and compare notes with your classmates. You can also try to remember what they look like, and draw them from memory. However, be careful not to disturb the butterflies! They easily fly away when you approach, so try staying in one spot for a while.
* What different colours and shapes do you see?
* Do some of those butterflies have patterns? Which ones?
* What parts can you see, besides the wings?
* Do you see pairs or groups forming?
* When they aren’t flying, what are they resting on?
* Are their wings spread out, or folded together?
* Do you spot any caterpillars? What do they look like?
I also made some observations in a green area close to my house. I had lots of questions, so I researched online and contacted Fruits de Mer, which is an association that promotes awareness of wildlife here on the island. As it turns out, Fruits de Mer even published a very handy book – The Incomplete Guide to the Wildlife of Saint Martin.
Here’s what I found
We have 35 species of butterflies on the island, although who knows, there may be more that have not been discovered yet.
Butterflies are colourful and active during the day. Most moths, on the other hand, are nocturnal, meaning they are active at night. Together, butterflies and moths form the insect family Lepidoptera.
When butterflies fold their wings above their back, it means they are resting. When butterflies are seen on moist soil, they are feeding on salts and other nutrients that aren’t available from their favourite drink, nectar from flowers. This is called “mud-puddling”. Sometimes you can see groups of butterflies doing this at the same spot.
Butterflies take in food through a long tube called a proboscis, kind of like how we would drink juice through a straw. They roll up the proboscis when it’s not in use.
And this is weird: Butterflies can’t taste their food with the proboscis. They actually taste with their feet! When the butterfly lands on a flower, it can tell if it’s sweet by tasting it with the tips of its feet. If they like how it tastes, they’ll drink the flower’s nectar.
Butterflies undergo complete “metamorphosis”. This word comes from the Greek language and means “to transform or change shape”. Butterflies come from tiny eggs that are usually laid under leaves that they can later eat. Hungry caterpillars emerge from these eggs, and when they are big enough, they hang upside down from a sturdy branch or stem and grow a protective layer called a chrysalis. While inside, they are called a pupa and are in the process of transforming into adults. After the transformation, an adult butterfly emerges, fully equipped with beautiful wings.
The world over, there are over 17,000 different types of butterflies!
Two main butterflies
When I looked outside, I recognised two types of butterflies. Most were yellow, and some were orange with black markings. The orange ones also looked wider than the yellow ones.
I found out that the yellow butterfly is called the Great Southern White, and the orange one is called Gulf Fritillary.
Great Southern Whites, as caterpillars, eat a wider variety of plants; while the Gulf Fritillary is a pickier eater, preferring plants from the passion fruit group. That must be why we see more of the yellow butterflies!
Great Southern Whites are usually white on the upper side of their wings; the males have a yellow underside, and the females have a white underside with dusky grey markings.
Great Southern Whites are one of many Sulphurs and Whites, which is a group of white or yellow butterflies, medium to small in size. Some butterflies in this group – which can be found on St. Maarten – look very similar, but have small differences in colour, markings and wing shape.
The Gulf Fritillary is orange with black spots on the upper side of its wing, and orange-tan with silver spots on the underside. The caterpillars are also orange and black, and full of black, branchy spines. They get toxins from the passionfruit vines that they eat, to protect them from predators, their bright and spikey appearance tell these predators to stay away!
If you would like to know more about local wildlife, ask an adult to help you, and visit www.lesfruitsdemer.com. Photo credit: Mark Yokoyama.
