God’s ‘Little’ Creatures – Common Fig-tree Blue Butterfly

These are small butterflies, averaging about 4cm in size. When seen with wings closed they look rather drab with the plain brown on the underside of the wings, and rather hard to see too. But they leave you breathless when they open there wings in the sun and show their brilliant colours on the inside of the wings.

They lay their eggs on Ficus trees (wild fig trees) the larva (caterpillar) is a rather strange green slug looking thing with white markings and black speckles all over. The black speckles are actually types of sent glands that excrete a pheromone that ants love. So you may often find ants swarming around the larva, the ants provides the larva with good protection, however no one can really say what the ants get out of the deal.

And to end with a lesson I learnt the hard way. The larva are well known cannibals, happily devouring each other if there paths should meet. The first batch I raised, I started with four in one container and ended with one turning into a butterfly.

Please feel free to visit my Photography page for more pictures of God’s amazing little creatures found in and around the Bluff: www.facebook.com/WkDickPhotography

God Bless

Warren K Dick