BUTTERFLIES

The monarch butterflies are one of the most famous insects of North America, with one of their subspecies known for their annual grandiose migration from southern Canada all the way to Florida and Mexico. The 4800 km long journey south for the winter, and then north in the spring takes four generations of butterflies to complete. The first generation lives up to 6 weeks only, while the last one finishing the trip can live for 8-9 months.

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Named after their distinctive tails, the swallowtail butterflies of the Papilionidae family consist of 550 species, found on all the continents except Antarctica. Yet there is a very specific swallowtail, the Pachliopta oreon that lives only on the Lesser Sunda Islands, east of Java in Indonesia. Besides their majestic looks, the unfortunate fact that connects the two butterflies is their delicate status. Just like many other insects across the globe, their numbers are vanishing due to the use of agricultural chemicals and deforestation.