Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 10, 2026
06:19
In situ Protocol for Butterfly Pupal Wings Using Riboprobes
Published on: May 28, 2007
Light and color on the wing: structural colors in butterflies and moths
Applied Optics
|August 14, 2010
Abstract:
All butterfly and moth scales share the same basic architecture, but various elements of this architecture are particularly complex in those scales that exhibit structural colors. These elements include the scales' ridges and their associated lamellae and microribs, and the trabeculae, the pillars normally that act as spacers within scales. The additional ornamentation produces thin film, Tyndall blue or diffraction colors and represents a particularly striking example of precision in biological pattern formation.
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