The Greta Oto glass butterfly is not only a unique insect living on our planet, but also an indicator of the well-being of the Earth’s ecological system.
Our nature has created amazing creatures -. Looking at these creatures, it seems that they are so fragile that they can crumble from a single touch. Among these wonderful animals there is a cute creature - a glass butterfly. She is so delicate, like crystal. Her wings are something unimaginably beautiful! She herself seems completely weightless! Another name for the glass butterfly is Greta Oto. It is a representative of the order Lepidoptera insects and belongs to the nymphalidae family. The genus to which the insect belongs is called Greta.
On different languages The “name” of a butterfly has its own meaning. For example, in Spanish Greta Oto is called “espejitos”, which means “little mirrors”. The English-speaking population calls the butterfly “glasswinged butterfly”, which translates as “butterfly with glass wings”.
What is a butterfly with “crystal” wings? And why was she called that?
Nature has endowed this amazing creature with wings that glow right through. Only their edges have color. From a scientific point of view, this is explained by the fact that there simply are not enough colored scales to cover the entire surface of the wings. Therefore, the edge of the wing of a glass butterfly is painted red and black, and the middle is colorless. There are also white streaks on the wing that complement the design of this beauty.
Greta Oto butterflies are very small. When they open their wings, the distance between them is about six centimeters.
Greta Oto is one of the rare transparent animals. Why does she need such a super disguise if she is not only very beautiful, but also terribly poisonous - only Mother Nature and Father know - the evolutionary process. As for the caterpillar stage, glass butterflies have striped colors with a predominance of red and purple hues.
Where does the Greta Oto butterfly population live?
These magical creatures inhabit rain forests, located on the territory of Argentina and almost the entire South American continent. The extent of its range reaches Mexico. It is worth noting that in the forests located along the banks of the Amazon River, Greta Oto is the most numerous species among all other butterflies.
How do glass butterflies behave in their natural environment?
Researchers have long noted that Greta Oto play an important role in pollination large number plants.
A peculiarity of butterflies of this species is that at the caterpillar stage they feed only on poisonous plants of the genus Cestrum. Over the course of its entire life, toxins accumulate in the animal’s body, which are retained in the body of the imago (the last stage of butterfly development – an adult insect). Such a toxic butterfly is unattractive to predators, which is what allows it to increase its population size.
Glass butterflies are excellent and hardy flyers. Greta Oto can fly up to 20 kilometers per day (during the migration period).
What do glass butterflies eat?
An adult insect eats exclusively plant nectar. Greta Oto’s “menu” includes numerous varieties of flowers that grow in the habitats of this butterfly.
Caterpillars feed only on the leaves of plants belonging to the genus Cestrum.
The glass butterfly is a natural indicator of purity. Reproduction of glass butterflies
Greta Oto's egg laying is done on the leaves of cestrum plants so that the caterpillar that hatches from the egg can immediately begin to actively consume this plant. Sometimes eggs are laid on plants from the nightshade family. Scientists noted that the female glass butterfly does not lay eggs twice on the same plant.
Natural enemies of Greta Oto
Due to the poisonousness of this insect, enemies in natural environment he doesn't have it. Who would want to eat food if it is poisoned? So birds, like other insectivorous predators, bypass Greta Oto.
Extraordinary beautiful butterfly with transparent wings and beautiful name Greta Oto, a member of the nymphalid family, has chosen forest habitats in the Amazon and South America. This butterfly can be found in smaller numbers in Mexico, Panama, and the mountainous regions of Venezuela. It is also called the glasswing butterfly.
Greta Oto's wingspan is only 5-6 centimeters. This beauty has practically no enemies. Birds and animals, to put it mildly, simply disdain it, since they lay their clutch of eggs on poisonous plants of the genus cestrum, on which the young caterpillars feed, absorbing all the poisonous alkaloids and then storing these substances for the rest of their lives. By the way, the appearance of the caterpillar speaks for itself; it is bright purple, warning all predators who want to feast on it that it is not advisable to touch it and it is life-threatening.
By the way, this transparent miracle butterfly is not only delicate in appearance, but also very sensitive to the environment. For local ecologists it is practically an indicator of the state of forests and environment. Since Greta Oto lives only in perfectly clean, unpolluted areas. And if ecologists observe a decrease in the butterfly population or their disappearance altogether, this means that environmental changes have occurred, and it’s time to sound the alarm.
You can appreciate the external magic and weightlessness of Greta Oto by looking at these photos yourself.
There are many inhabitants on Earth that cause bewilderment, fear and admiration. Is there a butterfly among them through which you can see everything, that is, a butterfly with transparent wings? It turns out that it exists.
The charming Greta Oto, a species of glass butterfly, is perplexing the entire scientific world. Greta oto- this name is similar to the name of an actress, a star of silent films. But in fact, this is the name of one of the most poorly studied butterflies in the world. The subject of her pride is her wings, the span of which reaches six centimeters, and are almost completely transparent. Through them you can see everything, as if through clear glass.
In English, a butterfly is called a glasswing or glass glass. The name itself speaks about the characteristics of an unusual small living organism. The Spanish name for the insect is espejitos, that is, mirrors. One can imagine how surprised the person who first saw this creature was, before such a name appeared in Greta Oto.
The tissue between the veins of insect wings is translucent. She spread her amazing wings for centuries, so as not to scare away enemies, but to hide from them.
The wings are edged dark color, there may be a splash of orange tint. If not for such additions, the butterfly would remain invisible to humans. The genus glasswort is a specific species of butterflies. The common ancestor of all insects of this genus has long been extinct, but the group to which they belong, or “clade” in scientific
They still exist today under the name glass butterflies.
Transparency is not a very clear phenomenon. Transparent fabric does not absorb sunlight or scatter it. People cannot become transparent, because their bodies contain biochemical compounds that do not have such properties. This means that the wings of a transparent butterfly have a refractive index that ensures high transparency. There is a hypothesis or assumption that they are covered with microscopic protrusions that have the same indicators and do not scatter light at all. Therefore, the wings of the glassware are transparent.
They live in the lower layers of tropical rain forests, from Panama to Mexico. They feed on the nectar of a variety of flowers, and when it is time to lay eggs, the butterfly resorts to a kind of “know-how”. It ensures the survival of caterpillars by laying eggs on a plant of the genus Cestrum. It is very poisonous. Bright purple caterpillars with red stripes scare off enemies with one look, who understand that such a “delicacy” is inedible for both birds and animals. The accumulated alkaloids remain in the bodies of adult butterflies. Neither will any enemy eat them. Insects of the genus glassworts are known for migrating over vast distances.
Environmentalists use Greta Oto to determine the level of environmental pollution. Butterflies live only in places where their condition is ideal. The slightest changes in the state of the environment cause the death of the population
Original and unusual things are always created as a result of inspiration, creative search and a special mood. Most likely, it was in this vein that Mother Nature acted when creating some insects. How else can one explain the fact that some of their species turned out to be incredibly scary and even disgusting, while others turned out to be cute, funny and very colorful.
As an example, we can take the Greta Oto butterfly, which is called the “glass” butterfly. This is just a unique insect, cute and very fragile. At first glance it may seem that this is not living creature, but a crystal brooch, which at the slightest touch can crumble into small pieces. However, there is no doubt that our heroine is really extremely gentle. To do this, just look at her thin and transparent wings. The butterfly itself is like a feather, which at the slightest breath of wind can break off and fly. She is completely weightless.
The butterfly's habitat includes the territory South America. Most of it is in the area of the Amazon River. Most likely, this is due to high humidity, to which the butterfly is partial. Greta Oto also has other names. The Spaniards call it “little mirrors”, and the British call it “a butterfly with glass wings”. We call it “the butterfly with crystal wings.” In essence, all these names are absolutely identical, and relate to appearance a butterfly, or rather, its transparent wings. Only their edges are covered with colored scales, while the rest is colorless and transparent. The edging can be red or black. The result is a very original ornament.
The insect is very small. Its wingspan is only six centimeters. Scientists classify the butterfly as a transparent insect. Despite such a fragile and pretty appearance, the butterfly has serious weapons. While in the caterpillar stage, it feeds on the leaves of a poisonous plant. As a result, toxins accumulate in her body, which make her incredibly toxic. This is evidenced by the bright edging of its wings, which scares away predators. The caterpillar itself is also unusually colored. Her body is covered in red and purple stripes. Due to its toxicity, natural enemies Greta Oto does not.
An adult butterfly feeds exclusively on nectar, which it obtains from flowers and plants. She travels vast distances in search of food. During the day it can fly more than ten kilometers.
The butterfly reproduces only in those areas where the cestrum grows. Greta Oto lays eggs on its leaves, from which caterpillars subsequently hatch. They feed exclusively on this poisonous plant. The most interesting thing is that for each next clutch the butterfly chooses a new plant. She never makes two clutches in one place.
The butterfly is very sensitive to the ecological state of the environment, and is its natural indicator. She tries to avoid polluted places. The unfavorable ecology is evidenced by a sharp decline in its population.