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Bugs by type › Butterflies and moths
Butterflies and moths Butterflies and moths are one group. Their wings are covered in thousands of tiny overlapping scales, like tiles on a roof, and it is the scales that carry the colour. There are about ten times as many kinds of moth as butterfly.
How to tell
What makes a butterfly or moth
01 Scales The wings are covered in dust-like scales. Touch one and the colour comes off on your finger.
02 Tongue A long drinking tube, coiled up like a spring under the head.
03 Four stages Egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, adult. The caterpillar does the eating and the adult does the travelling.
Tap any of them for its own page of facts and photos, or to have it follow you.
All the types
Following you Ladybird Change bug
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Garden Meadow Pond Log pile After dark Savanna Rainforest Rainforest Japanese garden Backyard Tropical north Backyard Desert Amazon Cloud forest
The garden
Ladybird Walks after you, and flies when you get well ahead Bumblebee Buzzes along behind you and hovers when you stop Red-tailed bee Hums after you, bobbing as it goes Honeybee Flies after you, then waggles when it stops Hoverfly Darts after you and hangs dead still in the air Ants March after you in a line Snail Glides after you, leaving a trail Garden spider Lowers itself on a thread of silk
Meadow and hedgerow
Peacock Flutters after you and basks with its wings open Red admiral Glides after you in strong, fast swoops Brimstone Flies after you without stopping for long Orange-tip Flutters after you along the hedge Meadow brown Bobs after you, low over the grass Hummingbird hawk-moth Hovers after you, tongue out Grasshopper Hops after you in long jumps Bush-cricket Hops after you, antennae waving
Pond and stream bugs live on their own page: choosing one takes you there.
Pond and stream
Dragonfly Hunts back and forth after you, hovering to look Damselfly Flutters after you like a butterfly Pond skater Skates after you in quick strokes Whirligig beetles Whirl after you in a spinning group Diving beetle Swims after you, diving and bobbing up Mayflies Dance after you, up and down over the water
The log pile
Stag beetle Walks after you, and takes off with a whirr Ground beetle Sprints after you in bursts Woodlouse Trundles after you, and rolls up if you rush it Centipede Races after you on fifteen pairs of legs Millipede Flows after you on a wave of legs Earthworm Wriggles after you, stretching and shrinking
After dark
Glow-worm Crawls after you, leaving a glowing trail Moths Circle your lamp, bumping into the light Elephant hawk-moth Circles your lamp at dusk Leopard slug Glides after you, slowly, on a ribbon of slime
The savanna
Dung beetle Rolls its ball after you Desert locust Springs after you in long hops Driver ants March after you in a column Baboon spider Pads after you on thick, furry legs Emperor scorpion Stalks after you, pincers out African monarch Flutters after you, slow and unafraid
The Congo rainforest
Goliath beetle Lumbers after you, and flies like a toy helicopter Giant millipede Glides after you on waves of legs Giant land snail Glides after you, very slowly Flower mantis Creeps after you, swaying Mother-of-pearl Floats after you, flashing as it turns Picasso bug Trundles after you, and takes off if you are slow
The Borneo rainforest
Atlas moth Flaps after you, slow and heavy Rajah Brooke's birdwing Sails after you on long wings Orchid mantis Tiptoes after you, swaying like a petal Atlas beetle Trundles after you, horns first Weaver ants March after you in a line Jewel beetle Scurries after you, then takes off with a flash
A Japanese garden
Rhinoceros beetle Trundles after you, horn lowered Giant hornet Hovers after you with a deep hum Joro spider Picks her way after you on long, banded legs Red dragonfly Hovers after you, then darts Brown cicada Whirrs after you, and clings on when it lands Great purple emperor Glides after you on strong wings
The backyard
Huntsman Sprints after you sideways, then freezes Redback Creeps after you on thin black legs Bull ant Marches after you, jaws open Cicada Whirrs after you and clings on when it lands Christmas beetle Bumbles after you, and flies with a clatter Praying mantis Stalks after you, swaying like a leaf
Tropical north
Ulysses butterfly Flashes after you in blue bursts Birdwing Sails after you on slow, wide wings Rhinoceros beetle Trundles after you like a small tank Spiny leaf insect Rocks after you like a dead leaf in the wind Peacock spider Scurries after you, then stops to dance Blue-banded bee Zips after you and hovers
An American yard
Monarch Glides after you on steady wings Firefly Drifts after you, flashing Periodical cicada Buzzes after you, and blunders into things Black widow Creeps after you on thin black legs Luna moth Flaps after you, tails trailing Green darner Hovers after you, then darts
The desert
Desert tarantula Plods after you, one foot at a time Tarantula hawk Runs after you, flicking its wings Bark scorpion Scuttles after you, tail raised Honeypot ant Waddles after you with its heavy load Stink beetle Walks after you, and stands on its head if you get close Rainbow grasshopper Hops after you, bright as a sweet
The Amazon
Blue morpho Flashes after you, blue then gone Owl butterfly Flaps after you, low and slow Leafcutter ants March after you, carrying their leaves Goliath birdeater Plods after you on legs like fingers Giant centipede Ripples after you, very fast Titan beetle Marches after you, jaws working
The cloud forest
Hercules beetle Trundles after you behind his horn Orchid bee Hovers after you, glinting Glasswing Flits after you, half invisible Eighty-eight Skips after you, quick and bright Helicopter damselfly Drifts after you, wings turning slowly Harlequin beetle Strides after you on stilts