This week’s Butterfly of the Week is the starry night cracker butterfly. Unlike its cousin, the grey cracker butterfly, the starry night cracker is hard to miss! Its dark black wings with bright blue dots look like a sky full of stars. The species is believed to have been named after Van Gogh’s Starry Night painting. These butterflies also have dimorphic traits, meaning that males and females look different from each other. In addition to the black wings and blue dots found on males, female starry night crackers also have a white stripe on the ventral (bottom) side of their forewing which is only visible when their wings are folded. Read the fun facts below to learn more about the starry night cracker butterflies before visiting them at SOAR – Tropical Butterflies. 

Fun Facts

  • The black wings and bright blue dots found on the wings of the starry night butterfly warns predators that they are toxic and not pleasant to eat.
  • Like the gray cracker, the male starry night cracker makes a crackling noise that sounds like Pop Rocks.
  • The crackling noise is used to ward off males and attract a mate.
  • Starry night butterflies are native to the Caribbean, Central America and parts of South America.
  • Starry night butterflies have a wingspan of about 2.8 inches.
  • Their lifespan as butterflies is 2 – 3 weeks.