Butterflies charm our eyes with their captivating colours and graceful dance of their fluttering wings. Yet their beauty is fragile, and their lives are fleeting, a brief flowering that embodies the ephemeral nature of the seasons. This delicate beauty has made butterflies the most sought-after and studied of all insects. In many ancient civilisation’s butterflies were symbols of life, hope, joy, renewal and perfection. They are found in the writings, festivals, and tomb paintings of many ancient cultures, including the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Mayans, Aztecs, and early Europeans. And they continue to mesmerise and delight us today – and not just by their brilliance and beauty – but also by their amazing miracle of metamorphosis, the terrific transformation that happens as caterpillars change into butterflies. What happens inside this chrysalis is one of the great mysteries of the natural world.
