Self-Made Naturalist

Butterflies – together with Moths – comprise the Order Lepidoptera (meaning ‘scaly-winged’). They are often seen flying around flowering plants in gardens as well as in forested areas. If one observes closely, one can find tiny butterflies among grasses, especially those bearing even tinier flowers. Moths are less often encountered than butterflies in urban areas, mostly when they are attracted inside our rooms by the electric lamps, dazzled by the glow.        Being insects, butterflies (and moths) have their body divided into three parts: head, thorax and abdomen. They have 6 legs, all of which are developed for walking in families such as Pieridae and Lycaenidae . But in some families, such as Nymphalidae , the forelegs are reduced and only 4 legs are visible. The base of the wings is attached to the thorax. Each side of the thorax bears a forewing and hindwing.       The lifecycle of butterflies is a very interesting a...

Odonates — an Introduction: ‘Odonates’ is a collective term for the dragonflies and damselflies – those small, slender, four winged creatures seen hovering above the grasses and water bodies, sometimes perching among the vegetation and at times in long flights above the ground. Most people get attracted to these by their super-fast flights, especially those of the dragonflies.      The term ‘Odonate’ has been derived from the Order of these insects, which is Odonata. The Order Odonata consists of three suborders – Anisoptera (Dragonflies), Zygoptera (Damselflies) and Anisozygoptera (Relict Dragonflies). Of these, Anisozygoptera or the Relict Dragonflies are the rarest. Above:   A simulated image of the  Meganeura. ©National Geographic Society. The dragonflies’ ancestors were probably the Meganeura , of the Order Meganisoptera. In a simple way, we can describe it as a larger version of the modern dragonflies. They evolved about 250 m...