Reposting of the Wild Butterfly Party
Wednesday’s Photos
Wild Party of the Butterflies
On a walk along the shore of the Arrow Lake in June I came across a most curious sight. On the ground I spotted a gathering of butterflies which displayed a rather odd behaviour. They were attracted to a grey mass of an object. Tightly bunched together they appeared to be in a drinking frenzy with their proboscises sucking up some undefinable liquid. First I shot a few pictures from several metres away fearing that they might fly away before I had a chance to capture their bizarre behaviour. As I came closer and closer I noticed that they completely ignored my presence. Rather they behaved like people in a bar being in various stages of intoxication. One butterfly was lying on its side sticking its proboscis deep into a crack of the unknown substance. Others sitting on top of one another. I was deeply puzzled. Now I was so close that my camera lens was able to take close-ups at times even touching their wings. Then I finally realized that the source of their attraction was a fish head, which had been left at the beach by a fisherman. I hope you can still enjoy the photos. Apparently butterflies do not always go after the colourful flowers. At times they rather prefer the valuable nutrients of a rotten fish head.
The Peter and Gertrud Klopp Family 
Wonderful photos. They’ll even gather around things like animal droppings, sucking up the minerals and such that nectar doesn’t provide. I sometimes see them along muddy roads, sipping the moisture. I suppose that’s how the butterfly practice called “mud-puddling” got its name.
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Thanks for inviting us to the butterfly party. Beautiful photos.
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What an amazing encounter, Peter. I have never watched butterflies feed on dead fish. You were lucky to pass that spot at the right time to witness this interesting phenomenon!
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It is indeed rare to see butterflies feeding on dead fish.
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I would have thought butterflies were vegetarians, not pescatarians!
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Pescatarian is a new word for me. Thanks, Amy!
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I didn’t realize butterflies ate fish!
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They do not actually eat fish but are after the minerals. See Steve’s comment above.
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That is similar to the “puddling” that butterflies do on a muddy puddle. They are extracting minerals from the fish just as they do from the mud. Not exactly eating the fish but licking its surface with their proboscis. What we consider gross is an m.o. for other species.
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Thanks for the info, Steve!
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Exactly.
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I watched several insects extracting nutrients from mud or faeces.
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Interesting. I never knew butterflies love to feast on rotten fish.
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I suppose the instinct for survival takes them to places we might scarcely imagine. Interestingly, on a trip to the lower Himalayas last week, place called Ramgarh, we came across the most butterflies per cubic feet that we have seen for a while. I suppose the place having a pleasant climate and abundantly growing flowers and fruits has something to do with it. Many varieties of birds and bees as well.
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For those who suffer from the heat, the Himalayas must be a great place to visit.
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Indeed. Even for people who suffer from the ‘world.’ Indian mythology has many references to sages giving up worldly pleasures and retiring to a remote Himalayan peak.
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The swallowtail butterflies and the fish head provide an example of nature’s recycling.
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