Owl Butterfly

I took this picture with my Nikon camera at the Florida Museum of Natural History's Butterfly Rainforest in Gainesville, Florida.
According to the... more

by AnnaJo Vahle

Title

Owl Butterfly

Artist

AnnaJo Vahle

Medium

Photograph - Photography

Description

I took this picture with my Nikon camera at the Florida Museum of Natural History's Butterfly Rainforest in Gainesville, Florida.
According to the Natural History Museum, the owl butterfly may be beautiful, but looks can be deceptive: in reality the species is something of a hooligan.
The juice guzzler loves nothing more than a day feeding on fermented fruit and fighting fellow males in the hope of a date.
Famous for the striking 'eyes' gazing from its wings, this large butterfly can be spotted a mile off.
Native to the forests of central and South America, the banana-loving species wears a disguise to protect it from predators.
This giant is conspicuous due to the yellow and black spots in the middle of its brown hind wings, which are visible when it is resting.
In captivity, these butterflies are happy feeding in groups and they enjoy the juices of fermenting fruit, typically banana, pineapple and mango.
In the forest they also feed on the dung of large mammals, and make a nuisance of themselves on sugar cane plantations. 
Luke Brown, one of the expert's behind the Museum's Sensational Butterflies exhibition, said: 'The owl butterfly is a bit of a thug. It spends most of the day sat at the fruit bar drinking fermented banana juice and getting drunk.

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September 6th, 2022