These colorful insects frequent open, sunny wildflower gardens, grassy fields and orchards feeding on nectar-producing flowers. Butterflies belong to the order Lepidoptera, which means scale-winged. The order contains over 19,000 species of butterflies and moths worldwide. Over 700 butterfly species occur in North America. Life history and behavioral characteristics displayed by butterflies include extremely short adult life spans in some species, a four-staged lifecycle and migration and hibernation activity.
Butterflies possess a complex life cycle that requires four metamorphoses to complete.
The resiliency of some butterfly species is displayed in their ability to travel great distances. The monarch, perhaps the most commonly known species in the United States, journeys more than 2,000 miles annually to winter in warmer climates. The life span of adult butterflies ranges between one week and eight months, and averages two to three weeks in length. A buckeye butterfly alights on a small white aster at Hercules Inc.'s Hopewell Plant in Virgina. Hercules Inc. Land-use changes and development have resulted in significant losses of native butterfly habitat across the United States.