Like a psychedelic flutter of love, a unicorn picnic, or a traveling band of kitten actors, butterflies spread happiness wherever they go. But as far as insects in the order Lepidoptera go, butterflies are just the tip of a very big iceberg. And perhaps – dare I say it – what’s hidden underneath is even more amazing.
Lepidoperans – also known as butterflies and moths – are an extremely large and diverse group of insects, with nearly 180,000 described species. “Lepis” means “scale” in latin, and “pteron” means “wing”. At the microscopic level, it’s easy to see how they got those fancy names:
Those scaley-looking things on this butterfly wing are, in fact, scales! More accurately, they are modified hairs, but we call them scales anyway, and lepidopterans are covered in them. These tiny structures overlap slightly like shingles on a very colorful house, and are what give butterflies and moths their diversity of colors and patterns.
Many of these colors and patterns are familiar – like the striking orange and black of a monarch, or the iridescent blue of a morpho butterfly lilting through the rainforest. They are familiar because, for the most part, butterflies are up and about when we are.
Although some moths are active during the daytime, the majority of moths are hidden from our normal waking life. But wait until the twillight, or until the stars come out. Check your porch light, or better yet, grab a white sheet, a lamp, and a beer, and you can see the myriad moths that make up the underside of the Lepidoptera iceberg.
Mangina argus, from Southeast Asia, is a particularly lovely member of the nightime set. This species has two noteworthy distinctions: 1) It may possibly have the funniest genus name ever. And 2) It has striking pink and silver markings reminiscent of a butterfly. Except that it isn’t. It’s a moth.
Moths make up roughly 80% of all known Lepidoptera (that’s almost 160,000 known species, compared to roughly 17,500 butterflies). Most of them are cryptic, but some of them are colorful. The beauty of moths lies in their incredible diversity. Don’t try to pin them down! (Unless you are starting a moth collection of course…)
The bright warning colors of tiger moths may serve as protection from daytime predators. But what happens when the lights go out? And bats get the munchies?
Whether vibrant like tiger moths or so cryptic they blend into the trees, moths truly are among the most intriguing insects. If you want to explore the hidden netherworld of moths for yourself, you are in luck! They are super easy to observe. All you need to do is go outside at dusk or later and set out a white sheet and a light, then sit back and shout, “come to me my moth-y friends muahahahahaha!” Learning to identify them is fascinating, and with National Moth Week coming up in July (yes you read that right, National Moth Week!), anyone can join in the fun.