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Investigating butterflies – an introduction

Almost all of the butterflies in New Zealand are native and most are endemic. Compared to big, colourful species from other countries, our native butterflies are small and secretive. Rights ...

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ARTICLE

New Zealand butterfly origins

Butterflies make very poor fossils. They have no bones or other solid matter that can be preserved. Therefore, unlike other animals, we can’t use their fossils to trace the history of when they ...

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ARTICLE

Our elusive native butterflies

What do kiwi, tuatara and many butterflies have in common in New Zealand? They are all native animals that the average person rarely sees in the wild. If you ask most people about butterflies ...

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ACTIVITY

Tagging monarch butterflies for science

In this activity, students place small stickers (tags) onto caught or newly emerged monarch butterflies and release them into the environment. The tag number, information about the butterfly and ...

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ACTIVITY

Establishing butterfly transects

In this activity, students set up and walk a transect to observe and record butterfly sightings. Butterfly sightings are then recorded on the Monarch Butterfly New Zealand Trust website. Modify ...

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ACTIVITY

White butterfly life cycle

In this activity, students use white butterfly eggs, larvae and pupae to examine the white butterfly life cycle and to compare it with that of a monarch butterfly. By the end of this activity ...

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Explore related citizen science projects

CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

iNaturalist

iNaturalist logs hundreds of thousands of photos of flora, fauna and fungi. There are even sound recordings too. Each is described and geo located. iNaturalist is used by citizens and scientists ...

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CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

Big Butterfly Count

This New Zealand-based citizen science project collects data about butterflies in our gardens, schools, parks and farms – any location in the country or on the outer islands. This annual event – ...

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CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

The Pieris Project

This project involves the pesky Pieris rapae (better known as the white butterfly or white cabbage butterfly), which is very common in Aotearoa New Zealand. It is believed to have originated in ...

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TEACHER PLD

Butterflies (upper primary) – unit plan

This unit plan is designed for students in years 6-8. When someone mentions the word ‘butterfly’, what image pops into your head? Chances are it’s the monarch or the white butterfly, as these are ...

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TEACHER PLD

Butterflies (lower primary) – unit plan

This unit plan is designed for students in years 1-5. When someone mentions the word butterfly, what image pops into your head? Chances are it’s the monarch or the white butterfly, as these are ...

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TEACHER PLD

Teachers using the Hub – Butterflies and citizen science ...

In this online PD session recorded on 30 July 2015, primary school teacher Angela Schipper describes how she used the Butterflies resources from the Science Learning Hub in the classroom. In ...

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Explore related videos

VIDEO

Collecting moths

Dr Robert Hoare, of Landcare Research NZ Ltd, takes us on a moth-collecting expedition. Join Dr Hoare as he goes out at night to collect moths for scientific study.

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VIDEO

Moths

Dr Robert Hoare, of Landcare Research NZ Ltd, introduces us to the world of moths. He describes their place in the ecosystem and how important they are to maintaining bird populations and their ...

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VIDEO

Fred the Thread – a poem

Dr Robert Hoare reads a poem he wrote about the native moth (Houdinia flexilissima), whose larva is known as Fred the Thread. The poem is from Robert’s book Six-legged Things and Scaly Wings: An ...

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Explore related interactives

SLIDESHOW

New Zealand butterfly families – slideshow

Most of New Zealand's butterflies belong to the Nymphalidae and Lycaenidae families. Use the Slideshow menu for further options, including view full screen, and go here for the download option.

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SLIDESHOW

New Zealand native butterflies – slideshow

Use this Aotearoa New Zealand native butterflies slideshow to learn more about native butterfly habits and behaviour, then go butterfly hunting! Use the Slideshow menu for further options ...

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INTERACTIVE

Monarch butterfly life cycle

The life cycle of the monarch butterfly. Click on one of titles to find out more about each stage.

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