See if you can find these butterflies flying in the Blenheim
Butterfly House.
THE BUTTERFLY HOUSE
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Butterflies and moths are known as Lepidoptera which means
“scale wings”. Butterflies have tiny scales on their wings and
these scales give them their colourful patterns. (The scales
are only loosely attached and come off very easily if
touched.) Often butterflies have a different pattern or even
colour on the underside of their wings.
You can try and find the butterflies drawn here and see what
colours need to be added to these drawings.
Almost all butterflies rest with their wings closed above their
body so the best way to see their beautiful colours and
patterns is to watch them as they fly.
Butterflies feed on liquids which they suck
up through a hollow tongue or tube
known as a probiscus. They keep this
curled up under their heads when they
are not feeding. Nectar from flowers is the
main food of adult butterflies.
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You may be able to spot some of the more common
butterflies that live in this country either in your own gardens
or here at Blenheim in the formal gardens and especially in
the Secret Garden :The Large White flies from April to October.
The Red Admiral flies from May to
October.
The Painted Lady flies from April to
October and likes thistles.
The Small Tortoiseshell is very common in gardens. It flies
from May to October and likes stinging nettles.
The Peacock flies from June to September and also likes
stinging nettles.
The Meadow Brown is one of the most common of our
butterflies. It flies from May to September and likes grasses.
The life cycle of butterflies
Male and female butterflies are attracted to each other first
by sight and then by smell. The female butterflies lay their
eggs on the plants that the caterpillars will need for food. The
eggs usually hatch in a couple of weeks, The caterpillars have
3 pairs of legs at the front and 5 pairs at the back, the legs on
the last part of the caterpillar are called “claspers” and they
help the caterpillar hold on to the twig they are on.
Caterpillars have jaws and they
mostly eat leaves. They eat
almost all the time. When the
caterpillar’s skin is too tight
because it has eaten so much, it
bursts out of its skin, having
already grown another, bigger one under the old skin. Most
caterpillars do this four times during their life as a caterpillar.
It can take about four weeks to become fully grown.
When the
caterpillar is
fully grown it
stops eating and
turns into a
chrysalis or
pupa. This is the
time when the
caterpillar turns
The Small Copper flies from February to November and likes
sorrels and docks.
The Common Blue flies from April to October and likes
vegetables.
The Holly Blue flies from April to September and likes holly
and ivy.
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into a butterfly. The caterpillar spins a silken cocoon around
itself and when it has changed into a butterfly it bursts
through and is very quickly ready to fly.
Wings are not just for flying. Bright colours on a butterfly’s
wings can attract a mate or be used to scare off a predator.
Some of the butterflies you may see in the Butterfly House at
Blenheim are shown on these two pages and in the pictures
throughout this booklet.
When held open, wings can be used like solar panels to
warm the blood and the blood takes heat back to the body.
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