{"id":17750,"date":"2022-09-10T05:00:06","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T03:00:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sciencefocus.com\/?p=126840"},"modified":"2022-09-10T05:12:09","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T03:12:09","slug":"top-10-worlds-largest-butterflies","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/rss_feed\/top-10-worlds-largest-butterflies\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 10: World\u2019s largest butterflies"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Holly Spanner\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Saturday, 10 September 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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With around 17,500 species of butterflies in the world, these colourful critters are important pollinators that help maintain the ecosystem.<\/p>\n

They\u2019ve adapted to live on every continent (except Antarctica) but generally prefer warm, open glades or woodland\/forest. Butterflies are attracted to bright flowers and strong scents, and if you\u2019re looking to attract butterflies to your garden, our sister magazine, Gardeners\u2019 World<\/em>, has put together this handy guide on how to make your garden butterfly friendly<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The UK has 59 species of butterfly, 57 of which are endemic, with the other two \u2013 the Painted Lady and the Clouded Yellow<\/a> \u2013 being regular migrants. Unfortunately, you won\u2019t see any of the 10 largest species of butterfly here in the wild.<\/p>\n

The largest species of butterfly we have in the UK is the rare swallowtail butterfly (papilio machaon britannicus<\/a>)<\/em>, although it\u2019s currently restricted to the wetlands of the Norfolk Broads. This is thanks to its highly selective nature when it comes to egg-laying. Preferring to lay eggs only on milk parsley (peucedanum palustre<\/em>) \u2013 the only food that Swallowtail caterpillars eat \u2013 much of the population has been in decline due to habitat loss, and the reduction in the land area where this moisture-loving milk parsley thrives. However, attempts are being made to re-establish the swallowtail butterfly<\/a> elsewhere in the British countryside.<\/p>\n

Read more:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n