Butterflies in Your Own Backyard!

Butterflies in Your Backyard - Urban Wildlife

The following is excerpted from the wonderful brochure entitled “Butterflies in your Backyard – Urban Wildlife” which has recently been re-released by our own North Carolina Cooperative Extension. The full brochure is available online at http://content.ces.ncsu.edu/butterflies-in-your-backyard

and is well worth the time to read.

It contains not only the material excerpted below, but also details as to the over 175 species of butterflies found in North Carolina with fabulous illustrations and photographs, scientific information, references to internet as well as print resources and so much more. If you are “into” butterflies, this brochure is a must! Butterflies are colorful, diverse, abundant, and active during the day in warm months, making them an ideal pursuit for wildlife watchers. In fact, wildlife watching as a whole, given impetus by the increased awareness of regional and ecological diversity, has become one of this country’s fastest-growing outdoor recreational activities. Butterflies and caterpillars (the larval stage in the butterfly life cycle) provide food for birds and other organisms, pollinate flowers, and are easy to attract to a garden or backyard landscape. Butterflies are found throughout North Carolina and will flourish within a well-designed landscape of native plants in both rural and urban areas. Planting a variety of both nectar plants for adults and host plants for caterpillars in a sunny location will ensure many hours of viewing pleasure as butterflies visit your garden. . North Carolina’s diverse natural landscape includes coastal dunes, pocosins, sandhill savannahs, piedmont forests, wetlands, and mountain ranges. These different vegetation communities provide a home for more than 175 butterfly species. Some species are found statewide, while others are restricted to a specific habitat type or region. Scientists classify species into a series of genera and families, based upon similar genetics or similar physical characteristics. Butterflies and moths are unique because they change from a caterpillar to a winged adult through a process called metamorphosis. A typical butterfly’s life begins as an egg, generally laid on the leaf of a host plant. A host plant is a plant that caterpillars like to eat. Eggs soon hatch into caterpillars, which act as eating machines to devour leaves of the host plant. Caterpillars often have very specific food requirements that restrict them to just one or a few plant species. After a few weeks, the caterpillar molts into a mummy-like stage with a hard protective casing, called a pupa or chrysalis. While in the chrysalis, the caterpillar transforms into an adult. At the end of about 2 weeks, the adult emerges from the chrysalis, spreads and dries its wings, and begins searching for food and a mate. Following successful mating, the female begins her search for a host plant on which to deposit her eggs, and the life cycle begins again.

Butterflies and moths are insects in the order Lepidoptera, meaning “scaly-winged.” A person who studies these creatures is called a “lepidopterist.” Moths may have whip-like, fern-like, or fuzzy antennae with no knobs at their ends. Butterfly antennae are smooth, thin, and whip-like with a terminal knob. Butterfly wings are covered with thousands of tiny overlapping scales arranged like shingles on a roof. A butterfly can fly even if these scales are removed. Colors such as blue, green, violet, gold, and silver on butterfly wings are not caused by pigment, but rather by light reflecting off the wing scales. Depending upon the species, adult butterflies can live from 1 week to 9 months. Butterflies (and other insects) have an exoskeleton, or structural support on the outside of their bodies, to protect them and keep in fluids so they don’t dry out. Butterflies and caterpillars breathe through “spiracles,” which are tiny openings along the sides of their bodies. Butterflies can smell with their antennae and have compound eyes that allow them to see the colors red, green, and yellow. Their eyes do not rotate to follow a predator’s movement; rather, they detect movement as the object moves from one facet of the eye to the next. Butterflies use special nerve cells on their feet to “taste” food and identify leaves of their caterpillar’s host plant before they lay their eggs. In some butterfly species, females and males look different. Their colors may vary slightly, and females generally are larger than males. But size cannot be used to distinguish between the sexes because individuals of any single species may vary in how big they are, depending on the amount and quality of food they ate as caterpillars. Most butterflies lay their eggs on a specific type of plant, called their host plant, which their caterpillars later feed on. Exceptions include Harvester caterpillars, which eat woolly aphids, and a few other caterpillars that eat rotting leaves rather than living plant foliage. Adult butterflies may feed on nectar from flowers, but some prefer rotten fruit or tree sap. They suck the liquid food through a straw-like “tongue” called a proboscis, which curls up under the head like a watch spring when not in use. Male butterflies often congregate at “puddling” areas, which include mud puddles, moist soil along stream banks, and animal scat. There they ingest salts important in sperm production.

Native plants will attract butterflies native to the region. Caterpillars are very picky eaters and will eat only very specific host plants; native plants provide these specific food sources. Most ornamental plants are bred for color and bloom size, not for nectar production. While these cultivars may be attractive to us, many provide little benefit to wildlife. Passion flower and many other native plants provide an ideal food and cover for butterflies in your backyard.

Creating a Butterfly Habitat An effective butterfly habitat provides everything a butterfly needs to complete its life cycle. Provide a good diversity of host plants to attract a variety of butterflies and their caterpillars. Caterpillars are voracious but picky eaters, and many feed only on a particular species of plant. Choose a variety of nectar plants that will provide food throughout the growing seasons, as different species of butterfly are active from early spring through late fall. Choose flowers with blooms of different sizes and depths. Smaller butterflies, such as hairstreaks and skippers, have shorter proboscises and are unable to reach the nectar in larger blooms. Larger butterflies, such as swallowtails, favor larger blooms. Consider the moisture and light requirements of plants before introducing them to your butterfly habitat. Choose only the plants most appropriate for your area.

Visit butterfly gardens at local nature centers or botanical gardens and observe which flowering plants attract butterflies. Do not get discouraged if a particular plant does not attract butterflies as anticipated. Experiment and find out which plants work in your butterfly habitat. Peelings and cores of fruit (peeled, overly ripe bananas work well) can be discarded in partially shaded nooks in the garden where they will attract butterflies that eat rotting fruit. Plan your butterfly habitat before buying and putting in any plants. Decide how much space you want to dedicate to your butterfly habitat. Map the area in its current condition, then create a map for your projected habitat, making sure to provide for all the basic butterfly needs (sun, shelter, larval host plants, and adult nectar plants). Your butterfly habitat will function best in a sunny location. Most butterflies are active only in the sun, and many butterfly larval and nectar plants require sunny spots. Place taller plants and shrubs behind smaller plants and ground covers to maximize visibility and enjoyment of your design. Concentrate flowering plants with similar blooming periods to allow butterflies easy access to seasonally abundant nectar sources without excessive movement and increased exposure to predators. Many nectar and larval host plants grow tall. Taller plants and shrubs provide butterflies with shelter from wind and rain. Remember that many of your plants will grow larger and multiply each year as they mature. Be sure to leave room for each plant to grow and expand. Do not dig plants from the wild unless you are part of an organized plant rescue. Select nursery-grown native species or cultivate your own from nursery-bred native seeds. By using nursery stock from a reputable dealer, you will help preserve your local environment and the native plant population.

Make “puddling” (ingestion of salts from watery or damp ground) easy for male butterflies by designing water puddles and wet, sandy areas into the habitat and by allowing animal feces to remain in the landscape. Provide a few large flat rocks for butterflies to perch on while basking in the sun. You can provide shelter for the butterflies in your habitat by leaving snags (standing dead trees) or a brush pile. There is little evidence to suggest that butterflies actually use butterfly houses.