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The
Caterpillar that Eats Cuckoos!
____________________________________________________
Posted: 18th April 2008
Male Orange Tip
Butterfly - Photo: G. Bradley |
It's
hard to believe, but cuckoo is on the menu for the young of this innocent
looking butterfly... cuckoo flower that is.
The Cuckoo Flower (Cardamine pratensis) is so called because it flowers at the same time
as the Cuckoo (the bird - Cuculus canorus) arrives in Britain from it's winter home in Africa.
Cuckoo Flower - Photo:
G. Bradley |
It's flowers vary in colour from pure white to almost purple.
The plant is sometimes called Ladies Smock because of the
shape of the flowers which look like old-fashioned milkmaid smocks.
The stems of this plant are the favourite foodplant of Orange Tip Butterfly caterpillars.
April sees the emergence of orange tip butterflies, perfectly in time with
the flowering of the plant.
They've spent the winter months as a chrysalis, hidden among last years vegetation. Now they're on the
wing, feeding on spring flower nectar and looking for a mate.
Orange Tip Butterfly Egg
- Photo: G. Bradley |
This
month you might notice the female butterflies fluttering around these plants as they lay a single orange-coloured egg on each one.
A good way to see all the details on these eggs is with a hand
lens.
She looks a bit like a cabbage white butterfly, but as there are no cabbages around at this time of year there's unlikely to be any confusion.
The male Orange Tip is unmistakable (see top) with his bright orange wing
markings. As with most brightly coloured insects, the orange patches serve as a warning to predators.
They're full of foul-tasting mustard oil, absorbed by their bodies when they
dined on the cuckoo flowers as caterpillars. You are, after all, what you
eat.
 Butterfly
Net
Ideal for naturalists and wildlife photographers who want to get a
closer look at butterflies and moths without harming them
Our Price - £19.95 |
Related Links:
UK Safari Cuckoo Flower Page
UK Safari Orange Tip Pages
UK Safari Butterfly Section
UK Safari News
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