Monarch Butterfly, 5.5" W

6551, MONARCH BUTTERFLY 5.5"W are anatomically scaled to create the best reproduction of the life size stuffed animal and the most realistic stuffed animal in the industry. 

Who doesn’t enjoy witnessing one of these winged beauties in flight? From their brightly colored bodies to the effortless motion that seems in sync with some unheard symphony, butterflies are an insect all can appreciate. 

 1.  Butterfly wings are transparent. The wings of a butterfly are covered in thousands of miniature scales.  The colors you see when a butterfly flits across your yard are the reflection of light  through the scales. The wings themselves are made up of a protein called chitin, the same protein that forms an insect’s exoskeleton. Chitin is also transparent. 

2.  There are almost 20,000 butterfly species worldwide, with over 575 found in the continental of United States.

3.  Daily butterfly activities consist of eating and mating, both require briefly landing, which explains why Butterflies use their feet to taste. When food is priority, those taste receptors help the butterfly locate the right plants and key nutrients it needs for survival.  When a butterfly lands on you, it’s probably just hungry.

4. The average lifespan of an adult butterfly is roughly three to four weeks, however, the entire life cycle can last anywhere between two and eight months. As with anything, there are exceptions to the rule. At least one species of butterfly lives for approximately 24 hours, while some migratory butterflies, like the North American Monarch, can survive for nearly eight months. 

5. The most common butterfly in the US is the Cabbage White, named for its mostly white marking with hints of yellow and green like the vegetable. The male Cabbage White has one prominent black spot on each wing, while the female has two.

6. Although in many cases cold weather will end the already short life of a butterfly by rendering them immobile, others take the dropping temperature as a signal to move. Butterflies are cold-blooded requiring a body temperature of approximately 85 degrees to activate their flight muscles. As the weather begins changing some species simply migrate in search of sunshine. Some, like the North American Monarch, travel an average of 2,500 miles!

7. One of the largest butterflies is the Giant Swallowtail Butterfly.  Its name matches its  wingspread of between four and seven inches.. Their swallowtail name is borrowed from birds of the same name thanks to the long tails on  butterfly’s hind wings.

8. Butterflies exist almost exclusively on a liquid diet, in fact, they simply don’t have the necessary apparatus for chewing. Using their proboscis, which functions as a straw, butterflies drink nectar or some other variation of liquid sustenance. 

9. Since Butterflies are fragile with a short lifespan, staying alive for as long as possible allows the butterfly additional opportunities to mate. Continuing the existence of its species is of utmost importance, therefore butterflies frequently use their wings as a defense mechanism, either by folding to blend in with their surroundings, or wearing a full spectrum of colors and patterns to frighten predators.  A butterfly's wings are often their best protection. 

10. Butterflies actually have four wings, not two. Despite how they may appear in motion, or in drawings or paintings you may have seen, butterflies have four separate wings. The wings closest to its head are called the forewings, while those in the rear are called the hindwings. Thanks to the strong muscles in the butterfly’s thorax, all four wings move up and down in a figure-eight pattern during flight.

Product Description:  5.07(L) X 5.46(W) X 3.12(H)

HANSA CREATION, INC.  Farm Animals is HANSA CREATION's hand-crafted collection of realistic plush animals. It takes great pride in each enchanting work of soft sculpture art, carefully designed to educate, fascinate, captivate and inspire creative play for collectors of all ages.

Artists create each HANSA animal from portraits of the creature in its natural habitat appropriately called Hansa Creation Portrait's in Nature. It is HANSA's uncompromising integrity in design and quality standards that has charmed collectors for generations and continues to mesmerize new collectors of all ages.