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| Egg | Butterfly eggs come in many shapes and colors. The shapes include spherical, oval, and pod-shaped; the colors include white, green, and yellow. The eggs have a thin, tough shell with raised ribs or pits (reticulations). At the top of each egg is a micropyle, a small pit that marks where the sperm entered the egg. While the egg is developing, air and water enter the egg through the micropyle. |
| Host plant | A host plant is a plant upon which an insect lays its eggs. |
| Larva | A caterpillar is the larval stage of butterflies and moths |
| Pupa | The pupa is the stage in a butterfly's (or moth's) life when it is encased in a chrysalis and undergoing metamorphosis. It does not eat during this stage. |
| Chrysalis | The chrysalis (derived from the Greek word for gold) is the pupa of a butterfly. |
| Metamorphosis | Metamorphosis is the transformation of an animal during its life cycle (from larva to adult). The larval stage of butterflies and moths (the caterpillar) metamorphoses into a winged, flying adult (the adult butterfly or moth).Butterflies undergo complete metamorphosis. |
| Camouflage | Camouflage is a coloration and/or pattern that makes an organism blend in with its envirnoment, effectively hiding the organism from predators and/or prey. For example, the Australian leafwing butterfly is shaped and colored like a leaf, and is very difficult to detect when it is standing still. |
| Antennae | Antennae (singular antenna) are sensory appendages attached to the head of some adult insects. Antennae are used for the sense of smell and balance. Butterflies have two segmented antennae with a small club at the end of each. Moths have antennae without the club. Larvae (caterpillars) have tiny sensory antennae. |
| Queen Alexandra's Birdwing | Queen Alexandra's Birdwing is the biggest butterfly in the world, with a wingspan up to 1 ft (30 cm) wide. This rare, tropical butterfly is from a lowland coastal rainforest in New Guinea. This huge butterfly is on the US Endangered Species List. Its rainforest habitat is being reduced as oil palm plantations are created. |
| Western Pygmy blue | The Western Pygmy blue (Brephidium exilis) with a wingspan of .62 inch (1.5 cm). |
| Monarch butterfly | The Monarch is a common poisonous butterfly that eats poisonous milkweed in its larval stage and lays its eggs on the milkweed plant. Monarchs have a wingspan of 3 3/8 - 4 7/8 inches (8.6 - 12.4 cm). |
| Butterfly | Butterflies are beautiful, flying insects with large scaly wings. Like all insects, they have six jointed legs, 3 body parts, a pair of antennae, compound eyes, and an exoskeleton. The three body parts are the head, thorax (the chest), and abdomen (the tail end). |
| Endangered Species | An endangered species is a group of animals that is dwindling in numbers and may go extinct soon. Many species of butterflies are endangered, including Queen Alexandra's Birdwing. |
| Extinction | Extinction is the process in which groups of organisms (species) die out. |
| Herbivore | Herbivores are animals that eat plants. Most butterflies are herbivores. |
| Jumping Bean | A jumping bean is a seeds pod in which a caterpillar lives. When the caterpillar moves, the seed pod moves. The caterpillar will turn into a moth (Cydia saltitans) eventually. The Jumping Bean Moth is native to deserts and other areas of Mexico. |
| Lepidopterist | A lepidopterist is a scientist who studies butterflies and moths. |
| Life Cycle | Butterflies go through four different life stages: the egg, larva (caterpillar), pupa, and adult. |
| Migration | Migration is the movement of a large group of an animal species across many miles to avoid adverse conditions. Many butterflies migrate in order to avoid cold weather. Butterfly migration is not well understood. Most migrate relatively short distances (like the Painted Lady, the Red Admiral, and the Common Buckeye), but a few (like the Monarch) migrate thousands of miles. |
| Molt | When an animal molts it loses its old skin or exoskeleton and grows a larger one to replace it. Caterpillars molt many times during their development. |
