Red Admiral – with its wings closed, it and the other brush-footed butterflies hear better, as the ears are located beneath the forewings

Can butterflies hear?

Yes, but it does not have ears like ours. Its ears are on its body, in the form of membranes that correspond to our eardrum. Where on the body depends on the species. In most butterfly species the membranes sit at the base of the forewings (the equivalent of our armpits).

Butterflies hear low frequencies best, so that they can pick up the sounds made by their enemies, i.e. small creatures and birds. Moths hear very high frequencies best, such as those used by hunting bats.

More photos

Meadow Brown. Scientists have discovered that in the browns (a subfamily of the brush-footed butterflies) you can actually say that they hear with their wings. The explanation is that these smaller butterflies have an enlarged, air-filled vein in their wings which acts as a kind of funnel, extending their sense of hearing