- Do butterflies hibernate?
- Where do butterflies hibernate?
- Which butterflies survive the winter?
- How can I help butterflies in winter?
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In summer you see butterflies everywhere, but how do butterflies actually hibernate? We explain what butterflies do in winter.
Winter is a particularly strenuous and adverse season for all garden animals. While many birds fly south over the winter, squirrels hibernate and hedgehogs even sleep through the cold season, the butterfly seems to disappear without a trace in winter. Many therefore wonder whether and how butterflies hibernate. In fact, the numerous native butterfly species have developed very different techniques to survive this time of year. You can find out what these are and how to help the butterfly overwinter in our article.
Do butterflies hibernate?
Cold-cold animals, which include reptiles as well as insects, often go into a kind of hibernation in winter, which is also known as hibernation. But do butterflies hibernate too? It depends on the species: Many butterflies overwinter as caterpillars, pupae or eggs, as they are often much more robust in this stage. In these species, butterflies die in winter if their brief adult lifespan has not ended before then. However, it also happens that butterflies fall into hibernation. In some butterfly species, the adult animals also overwinter. Here the butterflies survive the winter by seeking shelter and staying there until spring.
Tip - caterpillars in winter: Many butterfly species do not overwinter as adults, but rather in the caterpillar stage. How the caterpillars hibernate also depends on the species: many larvae hibernate sheltered in the ground or under the bark of trees. Other caterpillars are almost defenseless against the weather in winter - the Lesser Purple Butterfly (Apatura ilia), for example, perseveres on its host plant throughout the winter. The caterpillars of the Greater Kingfisher (Limenitis populi) have developed a very special way of protecting themselves from the weather: They spin a winter burrow, the so-called hibernarium, in which they live as a caterpillar in the Winter before wind andbe protected from the weather.
Where do butterflies hibernate?
When walking through the garden in winter, the sight of a butterfly is more than a rare occurrence. The question quickly arises: Where are the butterflies in winter? Basically, most butterflies look for a sheltered place in winter. Naturally, these are often tree cavities, gaps in rocks or gaps in evergreen plants.
But you often find butterflies overwintering in the apartment. In particular, unheated rooms are predestined for butterflies to hibernate in the house, as the temperatures do not fall below minus point, but are at the same time low enough for hibernation.
The only exception is the brimstone butterfly (Gonepteryx rhamni): This butterfly is often found hibernating in apparently completely unprotected places. In fact, the small moth is not dependent on a frost-protected weather quarters, as it has built-in frost protection. By releasing water in a targeted manner, the brimstone butterfly can lower its freezing point in winter - so it can easily withstand temperatures of down to -20 °C.
By the way: The hibernation of butterflies does not only take place in Germany. Some butterfly species simply flutter south like birds in autumn, bridging the colder months there. The hibernation of the Painted Lady, for example, does not take place in cold Germany, but rather in warm southern Europe or even in Africa.
Which butterflies survive the winter?
The number of butterflies that survive the winter as adult butterflies is actually lower than you might think: only seven out of almost 200 species of butterflies survive the winter as butterflies. All other species overwinter as caterpillars, pupae or eggs or fly to warmer areas in winter. Brimstone butterflies are most common in winter. Thanks to their ingenious frost protection system, no sheltered space is required for the brimstone butterflies to hibernate - to the delight of many gardeners, who can discover the animals in the snowy garden. Peacock butterflies (Aglais io) also overwinter in Germany - however, the peacock butterflies prefer to seek a sheltered place in winter. The Swallowtail (Papilio machaon) is also looking for one for winteringprotected, frost-free place. Big and Small Fox (Nymphalis polychloros and Aglais urticae), the Admiral (Vanessa atalanta), the mourning cloak (Nymphalis antiopa) and the C moth (Polygonia c-album) are also among them Butterflies that overwinter as moths.
Which butterflies overwinter as adult moths here?
- Lemon Butterfly
- Peacock Butterfly
- Big fox
- Little fox
- Admiral
- Mourning Robe
- C-Folder
How can I help butterflies in winter?
Garden animals in winter almost always need human help - and butterflies are no exception. In particular, sheltered spots for hibernation have unfortunately become rare. If you want to help the butterflies hibernate, you should first and foremost make sure that there are places to hide: Dense climbing plants, piles of stones and brushwood, as well as dead wood and tree cavities are ideal for the butterflies to hibernate over the winter. It is therefore best to ensure a varied garden with many wild corners where there are enough shelters for the small butterflies. Alternatively, an insect hotel or a butterfly house in the garden can serve as weather protection for the butterflies. You can also offer unheated garden sheds or tool sheds to butterflies for hibernation by leaving a window ajar.
Butterfly-friendly plants are just as important for butterflies during the winter as a suitable shelter. Not only do they provide the butterflies with urgently needed nutrients after the end of the hibernation, they also serve as a hibernation opportunity for many caterpillars in winter. Therefore, plant out a diverse, butterfly-friendly seed mixture such as the Plantura Butterfly Club in spring or summer and leave the plants in place during the winter: caterpillars can hibernate on them.
How can I help butterflies overwinter?
- Leave the garden as natural as possible
- Set up a butterfly house or insect hotel
- Leave the windows of the summer house and tool shed open a crack
- Sow Butterfly Friendly Plants
- Avoid mowing butterfly-friendly plants in winter
It often happens that you have found a butterfly in winter.Especially when butterflies choose the apartment to hibernate, animals and humans often meet inevitably. Where the butterfly wants to hibernate is decisive for the further procedure.
If the animal has chosen an unheated room with temperatures below 12 °C, for example the roof truss or the garage, you can safely keep the butterflies in the winter Keep the house.
If the moth has chosen a room that needs to be heated, the butterfly needs help during the winter: the warm temperatures awaken the butterfly's spirits and tear it out of its hibernation - in the worst case, it works the butterfly then turns on after a short time because it uses up too much energy.
To help the butterfly hibernate, carefully capture the animal in a cardboard box and release it to a more suitable location. Make sure that the animal has a way to escape from its winter quarters in spring - an open window is a suitable escape route, for example. If you find a butterfly outside in winter, you should at best leave it in its place so as not to disturb its hibernation. Under no circumstances should you bring the butterfly into the warm house - this well-intentioned help is unfortunately often a death sentence for the colorful insects.
What do I do when I find a butterfly in winter?
- Location outdoors: leave the butterfly where it was found if possible, never carry it indoors.
- Location in unheated room (<12 °C): Schmetterling an Fundstelle belassen.
- Location in a heated room (> 12 °C): Carefully catch the butterfly in a cardboard box and carefully transport it to a cooler place, at the new location pay attention to escape routes for the spring.
Not only butterflies need help in winter, other animals also depend on people when the cold season begins. You can find out how to support hedgehogs, for example, in our article Supporting hedgehogs in autumn.