Advertisement.

EnchantedLearning.com is a user-supported site.
As a bonus, site members have access to a banner-ad-free version of the site, with print-friendly pages.
Click here to learn more.

ad
(Already a member? Click here.)



Table of Contents
Enchanted Learning
ALL ABOUT BUTTERFLIES!

Butterfly Calendar
What is a Butterfly? Life Cycle Butterfly Anatomy Information Sheets Glossary Printables and Activities

Butterfly Glossary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X-Z

Click on an underlined word for more information on that subject.


D



DANAIDAE

The Danaidae are a group of butterflies that are also called milkweed butterflies (becasue the milkweed is their larval host plant). The Danaidae used to be considered a family of butterflies, but is now thought of as a subfamily of the family Nymphalidae (brush-footed butterflies) [reference: Layberry, Ross A. et al., Butterflies of Canada, University of Toronto Press, 1998]. The monarch is a type of Danaidae butterfly.


DECIDUOUS

Deciduous plants lose their leaves at the end of each growing season.


DECOMPOSER

Decomposers are organisms like fungi and bacteria that break down and then eat the remains of organisms.


DECOMPOSITION

Decomposition is the decay or breakdown of things into more basic elements. For example, after a plant dies, it decomposes into organic nutrients.


DETRIVORE

A detrivore (or detritus feeder) is an organism that eats the dead remains of other organisms (detritus). Examples of detrivores include crabs, flies, vultures, and hyenas. Only a few butterflies are detrivores.


DIANA BUTTERFLY

The Diana Fritillary butterfly, Speyeria diana, is a butterfly that lives in fields and mountain forests in parts of the eastern USA. It has rounded wing and a 3 7/16 - 4 7/16 inch (8.7 - 11.3 cm) wingspan. Females are black and blue; males and brown/black and orange. Adults sip rotting dung and flower nectar from milkweed, ironweed, red clover, and butterflybush. The caterpillar is mostly black with many orange and black spikes; the head is orange on the top. The larval host plant is violets. Classification: family Nymphalidae, genus Speyeria, species S. diana.


DIAPAUSE

Diapause is a period of suspended growth or development in the life of some insects, mites, snails and crustaceans. Butterflies and moths enter diapause when the weather is too severe or food or water is unavailable.


DICHOTOMOUS KEY

A dichotomous key is a method for determining the identity of sometihing (like a butterfly, a plant, or a rock) by going through a series of choices that lead the user to the correct name of the item. At each step of the process, the user is given two choices; each alternative leads to another questions until the identification is completed. For example, a question in a dichotomous key for trees might be something like, "Does it have flat or needle-like leaves?" Dichotomous means "divided in two parts".

DRAGONFLY

Dragonflies are primitive, flying insects that can hover in the air. They evolved during the Mississippian Period, about 360-325 mya. Huge dragonflies with wingspans up to 27.5 inches (70 cm) existed during the Mesozoic Era (when the dinosaurs lived). Dragonfiles are not butterflies
Zoom Butterfly
Butterfly Glossary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X-Z

Click on an underlined word for more information on that subject.
If the butterfly term you are looking for is not in the dictionary, please e-mail us.


Enchanted Learning®
Over 35,000 Web Pages
Sample Pages for Prospective Subscribers, or click below

Overview of Site
What's New
Enchanted Learning Home
Monthly Activity Calendar
Books to Print
Site Index

K-3
Crafts
K-3 Themes
Little Explorers
Picture dictionary
PreK/K Activities
Rebus Rhymes
Stories
Writing
Cloze Activities
Essay Topics
Newspaper
Writing Activities
Parts of Speech

Fiction
The Test of Time

Biology
Animal Printouts
Biology Label Printouts
Biomes
Birds
Butterflies
Dinosaurs
Food Chain
Human Anatomy
Mammals
Plants
Rainforests
Sharks
Whales
Physical Sciences: K-12
Astronomy
The Earth
Geology
Hurricanes
Landforms
Oceans
Tsunami
Volcano
Languages
Dutch
French
German
Italian
Japanese (Romaji)
Portuguese
Spanish
Swedish
Geography/History
Explorers
Flags
Geography
Inventors
US History

Other Topics
Art and Artists
Calendars
College Finder
Crafts
Graphic Organizers
Label Me! Printouts
Math
Music
Word Wheels

Click to read our Privacy Policy

E-mail


Enchanted Learning Search

Search the Enchanted Learning website for:



Advertisement.

Advertisement.


Copyright ©1996-2018 EnchantedLearning.com ------ How to cite a web page