Butterfly dawn - description, habitat, species

In Russia, you can find a huge number of butterflies of various species. In total there are about 150 thousand varieties, in addition, this number includes moths and moths. Butterflies have rare endurance, which allows them to live in almost all areas except Antarctica.

Since ancient times, butterflies embodied fragility, grace and beauty. One of the most attractive is Zorka - an insect that got its name in honor of the goddess of Ancient Rome. It was first described during the life of Karl Linnaeus, who spoke about her in his writings.

Butterfly Zorka can be called differently: for example, its names are Aurora, short-whiskered whitetail and core. As you might guess, Aurora was the goddess of dawn, giving people light; on ancient images she was always depicted with wings, which is why the butterfly was given such a name.

What does a dawn butterfly look like? Where can I meet her?

Dawn is an insect with four wings, which originates from the family of whites. It is not very large: its wingspan is 48 mm, the front wing has a size of up to 23 mm. In different places, the size and color of butterflies can vary: as a rule, this species is distributed on the territory of the continent of Eurasia in those areas where moderate weather conditions prevail. The largest representative of this species is the zegris dawn butterfly, the wingspan of which is 38 mm, and the front wing reaches 26 mm. This is much larger compared to the same Transcaucasian dawn, whose wing has a length of 22 mm. And Grüner's dawn has a size of 18 mm. This insect is awake during the day, which is why it has a bright color: the main color in its palette is white. To distinguish a male from a female, it is enough to look closely at its front wings, on which there will be a large orange spot; the representative of the fair sex this sign will be absent.

In the hind wings from the inside you can see a lightish tint with small dots of gray. The entire head and body of the butterflies is covered with antennae, which are brown in the female and gray-yellowish in the male. Their antennae are capitate, also have a gray color, but differ in the presence of a gray club. The front wing is triangular in shape, black on top, but from below transforms into a pale white hue with a noticeable silky sheen; its fringe stands out clearly against the background of the wing, as it differs in orange and black. As for the posterior oval wing, it is white, with small black lines at the veins. If a dawn butterfly folds its wings, it will look like a small leaf near a flower.

This type of insect is often found in mixed forests, fields, meadows and steppes; can live near a pond, but will avoid too arid places. In addition, such butterflies fly into urban forests and live near residential areas, sometimes living there.

How does a dawn butterfly live?

Her flight time begins in early spring - in March, and ends in 1-2 of July. For example, the dawn Zegris, like other representatives, prefers to stay awake during the day, and rest at night. They love warmth and a lot of sunlight, which is especially favorable for their development: if they settle in cold places, where it is always gloomy, too humid or dry, they will not be able to bring offspring and die.They migrate in order to search for food (this is most often males, and females from the moment they are born continue to live in the same place where they were born, in order to later bring offspring).

The dawn butterfly is not at all aggressive towards relatives, there is no rivalry in their relations. The development cycle of this insect lasts about a year - from the formation of an egg to the maturation of an adult that lives only two weeks.

What does she eat?

Unlike other butterflies, the dawn does not fulfill the role of a pest in gardens or dachas. Her diet includes nectar, plant flower juices, which contain sugar. As for the caterpillars, they often eat leaves of fodder plants, which are not used either by the person himself or in agriculture.

Despite this, the dawn caterpillars need a lot of food: they gnaw everything - from small leaves to inflorescences, since this is necessary for the full development of the pupa, especially during winter. The caterpillar stage is the longest in the process of development of the insect: during this time he needs to collect a lot of nutrients, which he will have enough for the rest of his life.

How does the dawn butterfly breed?

For some time, the males are in search of a suitable female: for this they need to overcome tens and hundreds of kilometers, because of which they can even climb to a height of two thousand meters. After mating, the female begins to lay eggs on the back side of plant leaves - this is necessary so that the newly hatched offspring can immediately eat them. Usually this happens once a year: during this time, it can lay one, two or three eggs, from which in two weeks a small but active caterpillar of greenish-blue color with a green head, dark dots throughout the body and a dorsal line in white. In the process of eating seeds and herbs, it can ripen in five weeks. A caterpillar is pupating in the middle of summer; the appeared chrysalis also differs in green color, but sometimes it can become brown. Its surface is smooth, with white stripes on its sides.

The development of the pupa lasts 9 months. At this time, she is very vulnerable, and therefore prefers to hide in a safe place most of the day and night: for this she attaches herself to the plant stem with a thin silk web and remains in this position for the whole winter. However, this is a great risk for her: if the stem breaks or burns, the chrysalis will also die.

What are the features of the dawn butterfly?

1. In some regions of Russia (for example, in the Moscow region), as well as in Ukraine, it is classified as an endangered species. The butterfly is securely protected in several Russian reserves and is even listed in the Red Book.
2. The butterfly can be seen on the postage stamps of Hungary, Germany, Norway and even Albania.
3. The life cycle of the dawn butterfly symbolizes endless rebirth: from the stage of the egg, it turns into a caterpillar, then a chrysalis, then an imago, after which the egg follows again.

Butterflies are so beautiful and mysterious creatures that they have long played a large role in mythology, world religions and even feng shui. According to ancient beliefs, it personifies not only rebirth, transformation and new life, but also the souls of dead people who can return to people from the other world. The day butterfly is all that which is hidden in the soul of a person, his life, falls and ups, proving that after each failure a bright streak necessarily occurs. It is a sign that a person feels great when he says that butterflies “flutter” inside him.

Video: Dawn Butterfly (Anthocharis cardamines)