Greta oto

"Glasswing" redirects here. For the African glasswings, see Ornipholidotos. For the Australian glasswing, see Acraea andromacha.Glasswinged butterfly

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Nymphalidae
Tribe: Ithomiini
Genus: Greta
Species: G. oto
Binomial name
Greta oto
Geyer, 1837


The Glasswinged butterfly (Greta oto) is a brush-footed butterfly, and is a member of the subfamily Danainae, tribe Ithomiini, subtribe Godyridina.

G. oto adults also exhibit a number of interesting behaviors, such as long migrations and lekking among males.

Description
The wings are translucent, with a wingspan of 5.6 to 6.1 cm (2.2 to 2.4 in). Its most common English name is glasswinged butterfly, and its Spanish name is "espejitos", which means "little mirrors." Indeed, the tissue between the veins of its wings looks like glass, as it lacks the colored scales found in other butterflies.The opaque borders of its wings are dark brown sometimes tinted with red or orange, and its body is dark in color.

Feeding
G. morgane oto visits common flowers like lantana, but prefers to lay its eggs on plants of the tropical Solanaceae genus Cestrum.The green caterpillars feed on these toxic plants and are perhaps toxic to predators through secondary chemicals stored in their tissues; caterpillar chemical extracts are unpalatable to Paraponera clavata ants.Adults are also assumed to be toxic, but their toxicity mainly results from males feeding on flowers (e.g., Asteraceae) whose nectar contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids. These same alkaloids also are converted into pheromones by the males and used to attract females.

Morpho Didius

A Morpho butterfly may be one of over 80 species of butterflies in the genus Morpho. They are Neotropical butterflies found mostly in South America as well as Mexico and Central America.Morphos range in wingspan from the 7.5 cm (3 inch) M. rhodopteron to the imposing 20 cm (8 inch) Sunset Morpho, M. hecuba. The name Morpho, meaning changed or modified, is also an epithet of Aphrodite and Venus.



Coloration

Many Morpho butterflies are colored in metallic, shimmering shades of blue and green. These colors are not a result of pigmentation but are an example of iridescence: the microscopic scales covering the Morpho's wings reflect incident light repeatedly at successive layers, leading to interference effects that depend on both wavelength and angle of incidence/observance.Thus the colors produced vary with viewing angle, however they are actually surprisingly uniform, perhaps due to the tetrahedral (diamond-like) structural arrangement of the scales or diffraction from overlying cell layers. This structure may be likened to a photonic crystal. The lamellate structure of their wing scales has been studied as a model in the development of fabrics, dye-free paints, and anti-counterfeit technology used in currency.

The iridescent lamellae are only present on the dorsal side of their wings, leaving the ventral side brown.

The ventral side is decorated with ocelli or eyespots. In some species, such as M. godarti, the dorsal lamellae are so thin as to allow the ventral ocelli to peek through. While not all Morphos have iridescent coloration, they all have ocelli. In most species only the males are colorful, supporting the theory that the coloration is used for intrasexual communication between males. The lamellae reflect up to 70% of light falling on them, including any ultraviolet (UV). The eyes of Morpho butterflies are thought to be highly sensitive to UV light and therefore the males are able to see each other from great distances. Some South American species are reportedly visible by the human eye up to one kilometre away.

There also exist a number of other species which are tawny orange or dark brown for instance (M. hecuba, M. telemachus). Some species are white principal among these being M. catenarius and M. laertes. An unusual species that is fundamentally white in coloration, but which exhibits a stunning pearlescent purple and teal iridescence when viewed at certain angles is the rare M. sulkowskyi.Some Andean species are small and delicate (M. lympharis). Among the metallic blue Morpho species, M. rhetenor stands out as the most iridescence of all, with M. cypris a close second. Indeed, M. cypris is notable in that specimens that are mounted in entomological collections will exhibit color differences across the wings if they are not 'set' perfectly flat.

There is a nanotechnology concept based on the Morphos wings, that is being used to fight counterfeiters.



Habitat

Habitat. Primary forests of the Amazon and Atlantic. Also adapted to breed in a wide variety of other forested habitats, for instance the dry deciduous woodlands of Nicaragua and secondary forests.Morphos are found at altitudes between sea level and about 1400 m.