Butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera) are one of the most abundant groups of insects—one in every ten animals on the planet is a butterfly or moth. What are the secrets of their extraordinary success?
In a lively Smithsonian Associates Zoom presentation accompanied by stunning images, Emmy Award–winning wildlife documentary filmmaker Steve Nicholls presents some of the latest scientific discoveries as he explores the world of butterflies and moths to find out why they’ve been so successful. Along the way, discover the world’s deadliest caterpillars, a moth with a tongue over a foot long, a caterpillar that looks exactly like a venomous snake, and a butterfly that shares its world with polar bears at one extreme and penguins at the other.
Learn about moths whose wing scales have better sound-absorbing qualities than anything we can construct to hide from the sonar of hunting bats. Others have long tail streamers with sound-reflecting surfaces at their tips to give bats a false target. Yet others scream at bats to jam their sonar completely. It seems there’s no end to the tricks that evolution has come up with as it turned the Lepidoptera into one of the most successful of all insect groups.
The event takes place Friday, April 26 at noon, and is $20 for Smithsonian Associates members, $25 for nonmembers. Register at https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/butterflies-and-moths (Below: an io moth, photo Steve Nicholls)
