Butterfly anatomy

Like all insects, butterflies have a tough outer skeleton (exoskeleton). The body is divided into three sections: head, thorax and abdomen. Besides two pairs of wings, the thorax bears three pairs of jointed legs.

In the brush-footed butterflies the forelegs are so reduced that they appear only as small stumps. A butterfly tastes with its feet – an important ability when choosing host plants on which to lay its eggs.

The abdomen, which has small breathing holes (spiracles) along its sides, contains mainly the gut and the reproductive organs.