Apparently, this is the time of year when butterflies seek their mates and put on a display like no other. Although we didn’t witness much of their encounters, what we did see was quite entertaining, and educational as well. Never did I dream I’d be Googling, “butterfly sex”, in order to learn about what I’ve been missing all these years, and to share it with you. Nonetheless, if you’re interested, here’s the drill, according to www.kidsbutterfly.org/faq/behavior/4:
“Male butterflies find females by sight, and use chemicals called pheromones at close range. If the female accepts the male, they couple end to end and may go on a short courtship flight. They may remain coupled for an hour or more, sometimes overnight. The male passes a sperm packet called a spermatorphore to the female. The sperm then fertilize each egg as it passes down the female’s egg-laying tube.” And…according to this website, “Male butterflies mark their mates with a stench to ‘turn off’ rival suitors”….go figure!
And why didn’t I learn about this in the 50s and 60’s? Probably because it wasn’t taught!
But aside from that, I want to apologize for the hiccups on the blog yesterday. I can only blame evil digital demons, since I did my part, but somehow, my post was truncated and I wound up reposting. Thank you, loyal readers, for hanging in there, and as always, for your kind comments.