Incredibly, it is said that Europeans actually grabbed this kind of butterfly chrysalis when they were robbing gold in South America. In addition, in the ancient Maya area, some people used them as counterfeit coins - but these are just legends after all.
This is the pupa chamber of [Mechanitis polymnia] in the South American rainforest.
In fact, their sparkling shells do not contain gold or even other metallic substances. This is a super reflective light layer made of chitin that looks exactly like the mirror reflection of gold!
The logic is: ① If you see them from a distance, they will be mistaken for a drop of water; ② If you see them at close range, the strong reflection of the mirror will make the predator see a terrifying similar species, which can also act as a fake tiger. The effect
At first, the chrysalis is high-brightness pure silver, and gradually turns into gold and dark gold. After about a week of pupa stage, the spotted tiger-striped transparent-wing butterfly emerges from the pupa, and the chrysalis will appear in a few hours. It lost its luster and became very crisp. Such a beautiful shell then returned to dust and dust.
#魔鬼 calendar# 2022.06.25 Spotted Tiger Pattern Translucent Wing Butterfly
