#mud puddling

[maria-aegyptiaca2]

[alphynix]

Did you know butterflies weren’t the first insects to look like butterflies?

Lepidopterans (the group of insects containing moths and butterflies) have been around since the Late Triassic -- but it wasn’t until the diversification of flowering plants during the Cretaceous that recognizable moths would have evolved, and true butterflies didn’t actually appear until the early Cenozoic.

Before then, back in the mid-Jurassic about 165 million years ago, a completely different group of insects convergently evolved remarkably butterfly-like features such as large colorful scaled wings and long sucking proboscises.

Known as the kalligrammatids, these insects were giant members of the lacewing group, related to modern forms like antlions and owlflies. But unlike their predatory relatives the kalligrammatids were specialized pollinators, possibly having a mutualistic relationship with the flower-like cones of bennettitales or the pollination drops of some types of conifers. They seem to have originated in China and were found across Asia and Europe by the Late Jurassic, but a few fossils from South America suggest they were even more widespread and may just have a poor fossil record.

They reached wingspans of up to 16cm (~6″), comparable to some of the largest modern butterflies, and often sported conspicuous anti-predator markings on their wings such as stripes and eyespots -- so it’s not surprising that they’re often nicknamed the “butterflies of the Jurassic”.

Rather ironically, the extinction of the kalligrammatids was probably linked to the rise of the flowering plants that the true butterflies would later be so dependent on. As flowers diversified and plants like the bennettitales declined, the kalligrammatids dwindled and disappeared, with the last known fossil record coming from the mid-Cretaceous of Brazil about 113 million years ago.

But while they were around, I do wonder if they also exhibited some similar behaviors -- such as mud-puddling for extra nutrients, and specifically the habit of drinking the tears of larger animals that we see in some species. Perhaps some non-avian dinosaurs like this Dilong occasionally put up with kalligrammatids sitting on their faces!

---------

Tumblr | Pillowfort | Twitter | Patreon

[natureisthegreatestartist]

Mud-Puddling behaviour of Common Emigrant (Catopsilia pomona) butterflies by P.L. Tandon

[musewrangler]

One child—listening to a history podcast. One kid doing homework and sitting on a heater. And one kid out in the gravel drive, stomping the absolute LIFE out of a mud puddle.

All of these could be a mood.

[mbimphblog]

A STUDY ON THE MUD PUDDLING ACTIVITY OF BUTTERFLIES IN ALAGARKOVIL HILLS, MADURAI, TAMIL NADU, INDIA |  UTTAR PRADESH JOURNAL OF ZOOLOGY

Butterflies are one of nature's most amazing species, with an intriguing activity known as puddling. The phrase puddling refers to the supplementation of minerals and salts from mud puddles, faeces, and carrion. The mud puddling activity of lepidopterans has a significant impact on the insects' nutritional and reproductive health. The purpose of this study is to record the mud puddling activity of butterflies in Alagarkovil Hills, a reserve forest area with rich biodiversity and high anthropogenic activity, and to test soil samples for various minerals and salts to better understand the role of mud puddling in butterfly reproduction. From July 2017 to January 2018, six sites in the Alagarkovil hills were surveyed for butterflies using the transect approach on sunny days between 0800-1600 hrs, three times a week. During the study period, 111 species from six families were documented, with the Lycaenidae, Nymphalidae, and Pieridae families being the most likely to display mud puddling. Male butterflies were observed to participate in mud puddling in greater numbers than female butterflies, confirming prior findings. Among the six study sites, the one with the most puddles had the most mud puddling activity. The soil examination of the mud puddling sites revealed the presence of salts such as sodium and potassium, metal ions such as manganese, iron, and copper, and macro elements such as phosphorus, nitrogen, and carbon. The salt and potassium percentages were discovered to be increased, which were stated to be the main elements eaten during mud puddling. The puddling activity was shown to be aided by the soil's alkaline pH. All of these abiotic elements have an impact on the nutritional and reproductive biology of butterflies, which may be tracked to determine the community state and diversity of butterflies in a given location. The preservation of mud puddling areas may aid in the restoration of the butterfly's biodiversity index. Please see the link :- http://mbimph.com/index.php/UPJOZ/article/view/2890

[v-chouka]

[v-chouka]

What’s mud puddling?

It’s a phenomenon common in butterflies! They drink up the decomposing bodies and blood from corpses of animals and other organisms so they can get all their yummy nutrients!

It’s also the tag I use for aesthetics~

[rcannon992]

A tale of two butterflies

A tale of two butterflies

Thai Cruiser (Vindula erota erota) male Doi Chiang Dao, 30 Nov 2015

This butterfly is Vindula erota erotaFabricius, 1793: the Thai Cruiser. There are both Wet and Dry season forms of this species (1). This occurrence of different types or forms of the same butterfly species, in different seasons, is called ‘seasonal polyphenism’ and has probably evolved as an adaptation to the different…

View On WordPress