The body of a butterfly exhibits most of the general characteristics of the insect, such as a body divided into three and six articulated legs ending in hooked claws. Butterflies have a sharp constriction between the head and thorax and four relatively large wings. Butterflies possess a pair of antennae to detect scents and two compound eyes. However, unlike most insects, a butterfly has no jaws, which, like bugs, are transformed into a single tube. Bugs can use these to pierce tissues to reach food and then suck it up. In butterflies, the mouthparts are usually not suitable for piercing, but only for sucking. For this purpose, the mouthparts are transformed into a long, retractable rolling tongue or proboscis.
In this article, unless otherwise stated, only the characteristics of the adult butterfly are discussed, see caterpillar for the characteristics of butterfly larvae.
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