How Do Butterflies Maintain Their Temperature?

February 28, 2017

If you didn’t already know, butterflies are actually cold blooded animals. This means their body temperatures are not regulated on their own. If the butterflies are either too cold or too warm, they are unable to fly. This poses the question, how does the Australian Butterfly Sanctuary maintain a suitable temperature for the butterflies?

Although our temperature in Far North Queensland does not drop below freezing, in Kuranda some of our months are a little chilly! When this happens, it does affect our butterflies. A colder weather slows down each stage of the life cycle and takes them longer to develop. As previously mentioned it also hinders their ability to fly, and therefore find nectar to eat.

To help keep the temperatures of our butterflies stable, the Australian Butterfly Sanctuary can manually allow or stop air from outside the aviary coming in. This is done through vents in the ceiling, which can be opened or closed when needed. During the hotter months staff open the vents to allow cooler air to enter and balance the inside temperature. During the colder months, the exact opposite is done. The vents would remain closed to allow the warm air to stay inside.