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Journal of Experimental Biology 138,271-288 (1988)
Published by Company of Biologists 1988

Wing Shape and Flight Behaviour in Butterflies (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea and Hesperioidea): A Preliminary Analysis

C. R. BETTS 1 and R. J. WOOTTON 2

1 Department of Biological Sciences, University of Exeter; Commonwealth Institute of Entomology, British Museum (Natural History), Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD
2 Department of Biological Sciences, University of Exeter

Representatives of six butterfly species, flying freely in the field or in simulated field conditions, were filmed with a high-speed ciné camera and subjected to kinematic and morphometric analysis. This is the first detailed investigation on an insect performing the varied patterns of ‘natural’ flight. Kinematic parameters in representative sequences of selected flight modes were calculated and compared, and wing shapes were characterized using aspect ratio and non-dimensional moment parameters.

The analyses and field observations of these and other butterflies suggest possible correlations between flight performance and wing shape. The behaviour of individual species conforms reasonably well with crude predictions based on aspect ratio, wing loading and wing inertia.

Key words: flight, behaviour, kinematics, wing shape, morphometrics, aerodynamics, wings, Papilionoidea, Hesperioidea, butterflies

Accepted on March 8, 1988




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[Abstract] [PDF]


© The Company of Biologists Ltd 1988