The Butterflies of the British Isles Quiz

Answer: Micropyles

Butterfly eggs come in many forms. Some have quite elaborate ribbing and fluting, others look as if they are covered with some kind of network or reticulation whereas some are pitted or almost smooth. They all however, have the micropyles which allow the male sperm entry to the egg's interior.

Answer: Fourteen

The first three segments of the caterpillar (excluding the head) are known as the thoracic segments, each segment having a pair of true legs known as the thoracic legs. In the adult insect these segments will correspond to the thorax. The remaining segments are known as the abdominal segments and will correspond to the abdomen of the adult.

The third to the sixth of these segments each possess a pair of false legs, or prolegs, as does the last segment of the body although the pair of false legs on this segment will form the anal claspers in the adult.

Answer: No

Providing that the caterpillar has not been immersed for some hours, it is possible to revive caterpillars by rolling them on an absorbent material like blotting paper or kitchen towel to clear the liquid from their spiracles. The spiracles are the breathing holes which run down the sides of the body. I have rescued caterpillars using this method myself on many occasions!

Answer: Puppet

It is at this stage of development that the caterpillar becomes the adult butterfly (the imago). After the caterpillar has pupated the body breaks down and, over time, is re-organised into the form of the adult. This process is known as metamorphosis, a Latin word that means transformation.

Answer: The cremaster

Under magnification it can be seen that the cremaster actually consists of a number of very small hook-like structures. Those species that pupate in this way spin a small pad of silk to which the cremaster is attached. Other species of butterflies use a number of methods to secure the pupa including silken girdles attached to the foodplant or totally enclosing the cocoon within leaves of the foodplant that have been drawn together and secured with silken cables.

Answer: The proboscis

The proboscis is the butterfly's most important mouthpart. This is the tube that can be seen extended and probing whilst the butterfly is feeding on nectar from flowerheads. It is not, in fact, a single tube but two tubes, each having a groove to its inner face that form a larger central canal when their edges are brought together. Nectar from the flower is drawn up through these tubes into a receptacle in the head before passing into the stomach.

The trochanter has nothing to do with feeding as this term refers to a small joint in the leg that connects the basal joint, or coxa, to its femur...in effect the hip joint. The mandibles are the mouthparts that the insect possessed whilst in its larval stage and the palps are elongated organs that are concerned with the senses of taste and touch.

Answer: The costa

The costa, or costal margin, is the name given to the leading edges of both the fore and hindwings.
The termen, or outer margin is the name given to the furthermost edge of the wings from the thorax and the dorsum, or the inner margin refers to the lower or trailing edges of the wings.
The apex is the point at which the costa and termen meet on the forewing i.e the wingtip. The point at which the costa and termen meet on the hindwing is known as the outer angle.

Answer: Seasonal dimorphism

Members of the family Pieridae, the family that contains the cabbage white butterflies, demonstrate this type of seasonal variation very frequently.
In those species where the male and female differ in colouration, the orange tip butterfly for example, the male carries bright orange markings at the apex of the forewings but the female does not, this is called sexual dimorphism and this is extremely common throughout the animal kingdom.
Gynandrous specimens which are sometimes incorrectly referred to as hermaphrodites, are those which carry both male and female characteristics (not necessarily genital in nature). This may mean both male and female colouring and patterning of the wings in the same individual. These examples are extremely rare.

Answer: The Lycaenidae family

Many species of the Lycaenidae butterflies spend their caterpillar and pupal stages as guests of ants. The caterpillars, early in this stage, secrete a liquid that ants find irresistible. The caterpillars are taken deep within the nest where they feed on the eggs and young of the ants.

After metamorphosis the adult butterfly, the imago, emerges and makes its way from the nest. The Hesperiidae family contains species of butterflies known as the skippers, the Nymphalidae are a large family that contain well known species such as the small tortoiseshell, the white admiral and the silver-washed fritillary.

The Pieridae family consists mainly of the white butterflies that are commonly seen and often referred to as cabbage whites.

Answer: The red admiral butterfly

The red admiral is a very common butterfly and can be seen on the wing from early Spring right through the year to early Autumn. Although a common species, newly emerged examples are stunningly beautiful creatures and rank as one of my personal favourites.
The white admiral is similar in size to the red admiral, but not as vividly coloured having mainly dark brown wings accentuated with white band running through the centre of each wing.
The small tortoiseshell is another very common species, slightly smaller, but with very brightly coloured wings. It is this butterfly that has become almost generic in British illustrations of butterflies in general.
The painted lady is an immigrant species from Africa that sometimes appears in these islands in huge clouds of individuals. These butterflies rarely survive the Winter except in the far south of England and then only in exceptionally mild Winters.

Answer: The peacock butterfly

When resting with its wings folded closed over its back, this butterfly looks very drab and uninteresting as its undersides are almost uniform black in colour. However, when sunning itself on the flowers of the Buddleia bush or when threatened by predators, its wings flash open exposing bright reddish brown wings, each carrying a large, brightly coloured eye-spot.

The eye-spots on the hindwings are more pronounced, possessing an edging that looks like eyelashes! Enough to give a bird a fright for a split second and enough time for the insect to make its escape. The comma butterfly takes its name from the white comma-like markings on the undersides of the hindwings.

The small tortoiseshell and the painted lady have been covered in other questions.

Answer: The Bath white butterfly

This species is the rarest of the whites that are encountered in the British Isles. The hibernation stage for this butterfly is its caterpillar stage. The foodplants for the caterpillar are Mignonette and Rock Cress. On the wing from early Spring to early Autumn, the bath white can produce 2-4 broods providing the foodplant is abundant enough. The green-veined white butterfly takes its name from the pale yellowish green colouring on the undersides of its wings, the orange tip butterfly takes its name from the large, vivid orange patches on the tips of the forewings.

This colouring is only found in the male of the species. The female could easily be mistaken for any of the more common white species. Both the male and the female clouded yellow butterfly have orange-yellow coloured wings edged in black and carrying a single black spot on each forewing.

Answer: The Camberwell beauty butterfly

A rare migrant, the Camberwell beauty butterfly is usually confined to the eastern counties of England, although in some years there have been large influxes of these insects. During the last three decades there have been such influxes during 1976, 1995 and 2006. This butterfly was named for two individuals that were captured near Camberwell in 1748. The larval foodplants of this butterfly consist of Elm, Poplar and Willow and the adults enjoy rotting fruit, especially plums, and sap runs from trees. No immature forms of this butterfly have been found in the British Isles as yet.
The grayling and Scotch argus butterflies are both members of the sub-family Satyridae and are far more common, the grayling being found all over England and Wales and as far north as Sutherland in Scotland, whereas the scotch argus butterfly is primarily found only in Scotland and the northern counties of England.
The heath fritillary is confined to the southern counties of England. It favours clearings in woods and the heathlike borders surrounding them. It is, unfortunately, becoming less common due to loss of habitat.

Answer: The purple emperor butterfly

For such a beautiful insect, it does have some rather unsavoury eating habits, although it isn't alone in this! The wings, at first glance, look a dull brown colour with splashes and dots of white, and in the female they are. However, the male has wings with a bluish purple sheen that can only be seen when the light falls on the wings at the correct angle.

The female of the species is much larger than the male. The swallowtail butterfly is a member of the Papilionidae family and is restricted to the fens of East Anglia. Very similar in colouration to its smaller cousin, the large tortoiseshell butterfly is restricted to southern England and Wales and, where it does occur, it is rare.

The silver-washed fritillary is a bright orange coloured butterfly with wings patterned in black.

It takes its name from the silver streaks on the underside of the hindwings.

Answer: The brimstone butterfly

The brimstone butterfly is common in the British Isles, and is found everywhere except Scotland. This insect is constantly on the move and never settles anywhere for very long! It is on the wing from early Spring to late Summer. The male is coloured bright yellow with the female a more greenish white. The gatekeeper butterfly, also known as the hedge brown butterfly, is a very common species.

The large heath is another common but variable species and, surprisingly enough, can be found everywhere except southern England! The pearl bordered fritillary butterfly, like most fritillaries, possesses an orange/brown colouration patterned with black markings with silverish spots on the underside of the hindwings.