How do butterflies hibernate?

In summer you can see butterflies everywhere, but how do butterflies actually hibernate? We explain what butterflies do in winter.

Winter is a particularly strenuous and adverse season for all garden animals. While many birds fly south over winter, squirrels hibernate and If the hedgehog even overslept during the cold season, the butterfly seems to disappear in winter without a trace. Many therefore wonder whether and how butterflies hibernate. Indeed, the numerous have native butterfly species different techniques developed to survive this time of year. You can find out what these are and how to help the butterfly hibernate in our article.

Do butterflies hibernate?

Cold weather animals, which include reptiles as well as insects, often hibernate in winter, which is also known as rigid winter. But do butterflies hibernate too? That depends on the species: Many butterflies overwinter as a caterpillar, pupa or egg, as they are often much more robust at this stage. In these species the butterflies die in winter if their short lifespan as an adult has not ended earlier. However, it also happens that butterflies fall into rigid winter conditions. In some species of butterflies, the adults also overwinter. Here the butterflies survive the winter by seeking sheltered places and staying there until spring.

Tip - caterpillars in winter: Many butterfly species do not overwinter as an adult, but rather in the caterpillar stage. How the caterpillars overwinter also depends on the species: Many caterpillars overwinter protected in the ground or under the bark of trees. Other caterpillars are almost defenseless exposed to the weather in winter - the little Schiller butterfly (Apatura ilia), for example, endures the entire winter on its fodder plant. The caterpillars of the Great Kingfisher (Limenitis populi) have developed a very special way of protecting themselves from the weather: they become crazy Winter storage, the so-called hibernarium, in which it is protected as a caterpillar from wind and weather in winter will.

Where do butterflies hibernate?

When you walk through the garden in winter, the sight of a butterfly is a more than rare sight. The question quickly arises: Where are the butterflies in winter? Basically, most butterflies look for a sheltered place in winter. Naturally, these are often tree hollows, gaps in stones or gaps in evergreen plants.

Often, however, you can also find butterflies in the home during the winter. Unheated rooms in particular are ideal for wintering butterflies in the house, as the Temperatures do not fall below minus point, but at the same time low enough for winter rigor are.

The only exception is the lemon butterfly (Gonepteryx rhamni): You can often find this butterfly in hibernation in apparently completely unprotected places. In fact, the little butterfly is not dependent on frost-protected weather quarters, as it has built-in frost protection. Through the targeted release of water, the lemon butterfly can lower its freezing point in winter - so it can withstand temperatures of down to -20 ° C without any problems.

By the way: The wintering of butterflies does not only take place in Germany. Some species of butterflies just flutter south like birds in autumn, bridging the colder months there. The painted lady does not overwinter in cold Germany, for example, but rather in warm southern Europe or even in Africa.

Which butterflies survive the winter?

The number of butterflies that survive the winter as fully grown moths is actually less than you might think: only seven of almost 200 butterfly species survive the winter as Butterfly. All other species overwinter as a caterpillar, pupa or egg or fly to warmer areas in winter. The brimstone butterfly is most common in winter. Thanks to their ingenious anti-freeze system, there is no need for a protected space for the lemon butterflies being able to overwinter - to the delight of gardeners who discover the animals in the snow-covered garden can. Also peacock butterfly (Aglais io) overwinter in Germany - however, the peacock's eyes prefer to look for a sheltered place in winter. The swallowtail also seeks (Papilio machaon) a protected, frost-free place for wintering. Big and Small Fox (Nymphalis polychloros and Aglais urticae), the admiral (Vanessaatalanta), the mourning gown (Nymphalis antiopa) and the C-folder (Polygonia c-album) are also among the butterflies that hibernate as moths.

Which butterflies overwinter with us as fully grown moths?

• Brimstone butterfly
• Peacock butterfly
• Big fox
• Little fox
• admiral
• Mourning gown
• C-folder

How can I help butterflies in winter?

Garden animals in winter are almost always dependent on human help - butterflies are no exception. In particular, sheltered areas for freezing winter have unfortunately become rare. If you want to help the butterflies hibernate, you should first and foremost ensure that there are shelter options provide: Dense climbing plants, piles of stones and brushwood as well as dead wood and tree hollows are ideal for wintering the Butterflies. It is therefore best to provide a varied garden with many wild corners in which there are enough places to hide for the small butterflies. Alternatively, an insect hotel or a Butterfly house in the garden serve as weather protection for the moths. You can also offer butterflies to hibernate in unheated garden sheds or tool sheds by leaving a window ajar.

Butterfly-friendly plants are just as important for butterflies during the winter as a suitable shelter. They not only provide the butterflies with urgently needed nutrients after the winter slump, they also serve as a place to hibernate for many caterpillars in winter. You should therefore plant a diverse, butterfly-friendly seed mix such as the as early as spring or summer Plantura butterfly meeting and leave the plants in place even in winter: caterpillars can overwinter on them.

How can I help butterflies hibernate?

• Leave the garden as natural as possible
• Set up a butterfly house or insect hotel
• Leave the windows of the garden shed and tool shed ajar
• Sow butterfly-friendly plants
• Avoid mowing butterfly-friendly plants in winter

It often happens that a butterfly has been found in winter. In particular, when butterflies choose to spend the winter in the apartment, animals and humans often inevitably meet. Where the butterfly wants to hibernate is decisive for the further procedure.
If the animal has chosen an unheated room with temperatures below 12 ° C, for example the roof structure or the garage, you can safely keep the butterflies in the house in winter.
However, if the moth has chosen a room that should be heated, the butterfly needs help during the winter: the warm temperatures wake them up Spirit of life of the butterfly and tear it out of its winter rigor - in the worst case, the butterfly dies after a short time because it has too much energy consumed.

To help the butterfly hibernate, carefully catch the animal in a cardboard box and release it to a more convenient location. Make sure that the animal has an opportunity to escape from its winter quarters in spring - an open window, for example, is a suitable escape route. If you find a butterfly outside in winter, you should at best leave it in place so as not to disturb its winter rigor. Under no circumstances should you bring the butterfly into the warm house - this well-intentioned help is unfortunately often a death sentence for the colorful insects.

What do I do when I find a butterfly in winter?

• Outdoor location: if possible, leave the butterfly where it was found, never carry it into the house.
• Location in an unheated room (<12 ° C): Leave the butterfly at the location.
• Location in a heated room (<12 ° C): Carefully catch the butterfly in a cardboard box and Carefully transport to a cooler place, at the new location on escape routes for spring respect, think highly of.

Not only butterflies need help in winter, other animals also depend on people when the cold season sets in. You can find out how you can support hedgehogs, for example, in our article Support hedgehogs in autumn.