Eye Spy – Butterfly Eye Spots

The Peacock Butterfly

The Peacock Butterfly (so called because of it’s markings, like those on a peacock’s feathers), uses it’s ‘Eye’ Spots to great affect for deterring predators such as birds and mice. When viewed head on, the rear ‘Eye’ spots create a head, with the body appearing as a large beak! The peacock butterfly is also capable of producing a hissing sound, audible to humans, which it makes by rubbing it’s wings together. This combined with the ‘Eye’ spots tends to deter most of it’s predators!

Bedraggled Peacock Butterfly Eye spots

 

Peacock – Threatening Head with Eyes and Beak!

 

The Ringlet

However, the ringlet’s ‘Eye’ spots appear to not be a defensive mechanism, but maybe partly a camouflage tool, and partly used during the breeding season. One interesting fact about the ringlet, because of it’s dark colouring, it absorbs heat relatively easily, and is thus one of the few UK butterflies to be seen flying around on overcast days.

Ringlet Butterfly Eye Spots

 

Ringlet Butterfly Eye-Spots

 

These photos are all part of the Weekly Photographic Challenge – Eye Spy.

 

 

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