The caterpillar machaon is a butterfly macheon butterfly,insect from the order Lepidoptera. Basically, all such caterpillars eat vegetation, but you can also meet "gourmets" who do not disdain mushrooms and animal remains. Although such individuals are extremely rare, but nevertheless they are.
Caterpillar butterfly mahaon is very unloved by people,engaged in agricultural activities, as it is not only very large, but also voracious. It can significantly damage the crop. The larva also did not like the fact that she is capable of spoiling wares from wool.
Without insurance anywhere
Like any other butterfly larvae, the caterpillarmachaon, can distinguish a thin, but strong silk thread. Usually they use it to tighten the cocoon to the support on which the pupa will be located. But this thread has another application. When the caterpillar mahaon creeps on the ground or a plant, it always leaves behind a thin barely visible thread of silk, which serves as a kind of insurance. Thus, when a caterpillar breaks from a leaf, it will not fall down, but hang on this pre-prepared "lodge".
Distinctive features
The caterpillar mahaon has a green coloration,diluted with black stripes and dots of yellow color. Such color is not found in other species of caterpillars, but this is not the main feature of this species. The most important distinguishing feature on which the caterpillar butterfly mahaon can be distinguished from any other, is bright orange and sometimes even red horns. In a state of rest they are hidden, and they are not visible, but it is only a caterpillar that is a little excited, as these horns are rapidly straightened, thereby repelling other insects or small birds. And for the sake of persuasiveness, they can sometimes give off odoriferous substances, and then the caterpillar is hardly likely to be eaten by anyone.
Evolution
As soon as the larva hatch from the egg, she immediatelybegins to eat, and there are in very large quantities. They feed on such plants as parsley, cow and other umbellate and composite. By the end of the summer, the caterpillar grows and becomes so fat that it simply can not eat anymore and practically does not move. As soon as such a moment comes, the larva attaches to the stem, hangs upside down and eventually turns into a pupa, sharpened in a cocoon. The cocoon itself usually has a brown or light brown color. In this form, the pupa is found all winter, and in the spring, as soon as everything around is dissolved, it turns into a beautiful magnificent butterfly mahaon.
On the verge of extinction
To date, in some areas, thesebutterflies and caterpillars are listed in local Red Books. This is due to their taste preferences, which include, for example, dill. That is why most people destroy caterpillars and remove them from their sites, because if they do not, they can significantly reduce the yield of greenery. Thus, if you see this cute motley caterpillar on your site, do not kill it, because it is not only very rare. From this "minke whale" one day a beautiful butterfly will appear. Want to see what the caterpillar of a machaon looks like? Photos are presented in this article.
