Member-only story
Earth’s wonders
When A Butterfly Flaps Its Wings
A fragile flight across the heart of South India
I woke up this morning to an utterly incredible sight. I am endlessly grateful for having eyesight good enough to see and savor such sights. I am still filled with wonderment about my good luck.
Imagine if I had not looked out of the window. Imagine if I had not noticed the scene unfolding out there. Imagine if I were busy with mission-critical work. Imagine not being interested in taking in this scene. Thank God none of these scenarios played out.
What about the butterflies?
Yes, yes — I am getting there.
Milkweed butterflies have confusing names for some of their subspecies — Dark Blue Tiger, Blue Tiger, Common Crow, and the Double-branded ones (commonly known as tigers and crows). Imagine naming butterflies after tigers and crows.
The average milkweed butterfly weighs less than 0.5 grams. Half a gram!! I can’t imagine how light that is. Even my dear departed Syrian hamster seems like a behemoth at 100 grams.
These lighter-than-a-crow’s feather butterflies pull off something so incredible, I can hardly put it into words. Is it true? Did I dream it all?
