Stories
Butterfly Wings & the Rise of Color
Butterflies and moths belong to the order Lepidoptera and all members have scales covering their bodies and wings (in Latin, lepis means to scale and ptera means wing). With over 180,000 described species, the Lepidoptera are not only diverse in their numbers but also in coloration. Their colors arise due to the nature of the scales they produce and can be due to pigmentation as well as structural color. Whatever the origin, color results from an interaction between light and matter.
The wings of a butterfly are covered in overlapping layers of scales that are composed of chitin. In this image, you can see the orange scales by magnifying a wing 140X.
Check out this YouTube video for more information on structural color
But not all wing colors arise due to pigments. The metallic blue morpho butterfly gets its color due to the nanoscale structures on its wings.
Here’s a compilation of butterfly and moth wings I’ve taken a closer look at using macro photography and the Foldscope at 140X magnification. See if you can figure out which are caused by pigmentation and which are caused by structural color!
Here’s a beautiful uraniid moth I spotted on the riverbank in Peru. Notice the shiny green streaks in the wing pattern and then what happens when we look at the wing through the microscope with the light source now shining from behind the subject.
The green scales on the uraniid moth turn purple when we zoom in. This is likely due to the structural nature of the scales – light is coming in at a different angle and thus changes to a purplish color.
Hope you enjoyed it! You can follow me for more updates on Twitter @AaronPomerantz
How to plan your Amazon travel to see this and other Amazon wildlife
Go on a hike in the rainforest with a trained guide: Butterflies are everywhere in the rainforest. You can see them around lodge gardens. However, to have a closer view of butterflies, hang out with a guide to see perched on flowers. Master hikes are highly recommended.
By Aaron Pomerantz
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What our guest say
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- Valuation Excellent
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Jacob Shama May 2024
Yaacov May 2024
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Dreamer627120 March 2024
The lodge is located in the middle of the forest accessible only by boat. The experience was very unique and exciting. Service is great, and the fun part are the nature activities and tours the hotel offers for free. We had an amazing tour guide that had a lot of knowledge and was fun to spend time with. The rooms are totally open to the forest which is really cool the struggle is the there is no privacy at all in between the rooms, also food was pretty basic. All together a very unique experience. Read all
This hotel is the perfect blend of comfort and hospitality, with the natural experience. The hotel is reached by a hours boat ride from Puerto Maldonado, expertly organized and accomplished. Most staff are members of the local Esa Ejja community. The food is good and plentiful. Hot water is always available and lovely bedding features mosquito nets. There is of course no air conditioning (one side wall is open in rach room) and the electricity is off for a few hours at night affecting overhead fans, so I was glad to have brought a small battery powered fan for sleeping. But the best of the experience is the wildlife. Our expert guide Oscar Mishaja introduced us to nearly 100 bird species, along with caimans, river otters, poison dart frogs and capybara. A trip of a lifetime. Read all
Excellent experience overall— really kind and welcoming staff at every point of the journey. All transfers were well organized and smooth. Excellent and educational excursions all around the rainforest. Delicious food for every meal. We had wonderful guides- Freet and Alvaro. Enjoyed our time here! Read all
We had a surreal experience at Refugio Amazonas. From the well organized transportation to the warm welcome, hospitality and the experience of living in nature - we loved it all. Huge shout out to our guide Boris who went out of his way to ensure we had a good experience and got to watch all kinds of wild life. The meals and cocktails were delicious. And even though this place is smack in the middle of the jungle there was super fast WiFi available. We made unforgettable memories. Read all
We had an amazing time in TRC. From the guide, tours, lounge staff, food and room, everything has exceeded our expectation and like an amazing dream came true. We highly recommend to directly book with the lounge website, so that you got a private guide for your group. Special thanks to our guide Saul, who made this experience extra special! We were so impressed by his knowledge about all the animals and the rainforest. Read all
We had an amazing time in TRC. From the guide, tours, lounge staff, food and room, everything has exceeded our expectation and like an amazing dream came true. This is the only lounge available in Tambopata national park, and this eco lounge takes environment seriously. We highly recommend to directly book with the lounge website, so that you got a private guide for your group. Special thanks to our guide Saul, who made this experience extra special! We were so impressed by his knowledge about all the animals and the rainforest. If you are a natural lover, you can’t miss this place Read all
Excellent and luxurious place, wonderful experience and our guide Boris was first class, he had a unique patience with my 8 year old son. An experience in the tropical rainforest that marks the life of its visitors. In addition to the scientific research that takes place in the place: a whole research center. Rooms: Very comfortable and luxuriou Read all
El mejor hotel para visitar la Amazonia peruana. Hotel eco turístico metido en medio de la selva, equipado para visitar y vivir la selva, su flora y fauna, en todas sus facetas. Todo incluido, con guías preparados y amables, resultó una experiencia increíble para mi familia. Dentro de las opciones no se debe perder el Canopy de 45 metros de altura para observar y escuchar la selva, así como el lago de las tres Chimbadas, lugar único para ver caimanes, nutrias gigantes, monos y aves exóticas. Recomiendo mínimo dos noches!!! Read all
Wunderbare lodge mit freundlichen Menschen. sehr persönliche guides, tolle Tourangebote und super kulinarische Verpflegung ! Wir wurden herzlichst von Caesar empfangen und unser guide JuanJo hat uns phantastische Dinge gezeigt. Wir können die lodge nur wärmstens empfehlen! Read all
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September 15, 2015 Butterfly Wings & the Rise of Color...
Butterflies and moths belong to the order Lepidoptera and all members have scales covering their bodies and wings (in Latin, lepis means to scale and ptera means wing). With over 1...
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February 07, 2024 Conquering Heights in the Canopy Tower at Tambopa...
It's lunchtime, and as if the forest is listening, the sounds change. The wildlife takes a nap too, as it's the hottest time of the day. The playful sounds of parrots and macaws su...
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