Butterflies are stunning insects you can discover in a wide variety of habitats across the globe.
People frequently employ them as symbols in works of art and writing. Sadly, there are also animals that eat butterflies.
Although there are different kinds of animals that eat butterflies, none of them seek them out as their primary source of food.
Butterflies only account for a negligible portion of the meals of almost all predators. Most of the time, they pass away on their own and decay on the ground.
Butterflies are not especially hardy organisms, and they do not have many protections against the climate or the predators that may threaten them.
After they have passed away, scavengers such as ants will consume them.
List of Animals that Eat Butterflies
1. Eastern Fence Lizard
First on our list of animals that eat butterflies is the eastern fence lizard. A common species of lizard that inhabits the eastern regions of the United States is known as the Eastern fence lizard.
They can appear brown or gray, and their backs have black or white patches. These lizards consume a wide range of insects, including butterflies, as part of their diet.
Although they will eat other kinds of prey, butterflies make up a considerable amount of their diet. It has been hypothesized that butterflies make up 50% of these lizards’ meals on average.
2. Fire Ants
The southern regions of the United States are home to a species of ant known as the fire ant. They can be either red or black, and their stings can be unpleasant.
Fire ants are known to consume a wide variety of foods, some of which include different types of insects, spiders, and even lizards and frogs.
3. German Wasp
The German wasp is a huge species of wasp that is found all over Europe. This wasp is black. It has a terrible sting and is notorious for aggressively defending its area.
The German wasp feeds on a wide variety of insects, including butterflies, as its primary food source.
They will use their venom to immobilize their prey and then transport it back to the nest to feed it to their young.
4. Gila Monster
The Gila monster is a giant reptile, and it is one of the animals that eat butterflies. This species lives in the deserts of the southwestern United States.
It is also known as the Gila lizard. Its body is black and orange, and it has a forked tongue.
The Gila monster consumes many species, such as lizards, rodents, birds, and insects, as part of its diet.
Butterflies are one of the types of prey that they hunt, although they are not their primary source of nutrition.
5. Golden Toad
The golden toad is a species found in the rainforests of Central and South America. This toad is quite tiny and orange in color.
It mostly consumes insects, such as butterflies, as its food source. The golden toad is in danger due to the destruction of its habitat and the spread of illness.
6. Green Darner Dragonfly
The green darner dragonfly is a huge, carnivorous dragonfly inhabits portions of Europe and North America.
You can find it in both regions. Its body is green, with two enormous blue eyes on its head.
The green darner dragonfly feeds on a wide range of insects, including butterflies, as its primary food source.
Their long, slender legs allow them to grab insects out of the air or pluck them off leaves. They do this frequently.
7. Green Iguana
Iguanas are huge tropical lizards found in Central and South America and are among the animals that eat butterflies.
The green iguana is native to both regions. Its body is a vivid shade of green and has a very long tail.
The green iguana consumes many different plant parts, including the leaves, flowers, and fruits of the plants it consumes.
Butterflies are one of the types of prey that they hunt, although they are not their primary source of nutrition.
8. Monkeys
There are many species of monkeys, each with distinct physical characteristics and distribution over the globe.
They are famous for their wit and the fact that they are always up for a good time. Most of the monkey’s diet consists of fruit, although they will also eat insects, especially butterflies.
Certain species of monkeys would save food by hoarding butterflies for consumption at a later time.
9. Orioles
Orioles are animals that eat butterflies and a songbird species native to both the northern and southern regions of the Americas.
They are well-known for their plumage’s brilliant colors and the lovely sounds they sing.
Orioles consume a wide variety of insects for food, including the butterfly. They can seize butterflies while they are in flight and then consume them.
10. Parasitic Flies
Many species of parasitic flies will seek butterflies as their host to feed on them. The larvae of these flies will bore their way into the butterfly’s body and eat it from the inside out.
The butterfly will almost always perish as a result of this. Flies that carry parasites are common in many regions, including North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa.
11. Snakes
There are a wide variety of species of snakes, but they are all considered to be predators.
Snakes will feed on a wide variety of food, such as frogs, lizards, birds, and rodents, among other animals.
Even though butterflies are not among snakes’ top choices for food, these reptiles will nevertheless consume them if they come across them.
12. Sparrows
It is no surprise that sparrows are on this list of animals that eat butterflies. These small birds are brown and reside throughout the continent of North America.
It is possible to recognize them by their song and by the fact that they construct their nests in open locations.
There are many different kinds of insects that sparrows eat, including butterflies. In most cases, they capture them by swooping down to the ground and seizing them as they pass by in the air.
13. Warblers
These birds are a family of tiny songbirds widespread across North America and some regions of Europe. Warblers can be identifiable by their distinct singing.
Their plumage and songs are easily recognizable as unique to the species. Warblers consume a wide variety of insects, including the butterfly.
Most of the time, they hunt by hovering over vegetation or flowers and seizing their prey with their sharp beaks.
14. Western Toad
The Western toad is a species of toad native to the western regions of the United States and Canada.
This toad is huge and brown. It has a skin covered in warts and spends most of its time underground or buried beneath rocks.
The Western toad eats several different kinds of insects, including butterflies, in its diet. To digest their food more easily, they will consume the legs and wings of their prey.
15. American Toad
One of the most common species of toad in the United States, the American toad can be discovered in various habitats across the country.
They can appear dark or green in hue, and their skin is pockmarked all over. Toads consume a wide variety of foods, the most common of which are spiders, insects, and other small animals.
Although they will devour Lepidoptera if they are accessible, this component of their diet does not make up a significant portion of their typical fare. Toads consume less than one percent of their food in the form of butterflies.
16. Giant Hornet
The Asian giant hornet is the hornet that holds the record for being the largest in the world. It has a wing span of more than three inches and can grow as long as two inches.
This insect can be found in East Asia and consumes a wide variety of food, including other insects, spiders, and even small rodents. Its native habitat is in East Asia.
However, they are among the animals that eat butterflies and will consume them if given the opportunity; this diet component is not one of their top choices.
17. Asian Hornet
The Asian hornet is a huge insect that resembles a wasp and is native to East Asia.
Its habitat is in East Asia. It can appear either black or brown, with yellow stripes running over its body.
This insect consumes a wide range of prey, from various insects and spiders to small rodents and even small rodent eggs and larvae.
18. Black House Ants
You can discover ants of the kind known as blackhouse ants in many different regions of the world.
They acquire their name because they construct their nests in shady areas, such as behind rocks or in logs, and this is also where they do so.
These ants will consume nearly anything, including other insects, spiders, and even small mammals if they can get their hands on them.
Although they will eat butterflies if they are readily available, this component of their diet is not one of their top choices.
19. Black-Eared Mouse
The black-eared mouse is a species of mouse that lives in areas of Asia and Africa. It is a very little rodent and one of the animals that eat butterflies.
Mice of this type can seem brown or gray and have black spots on the tops of their ears.
They consume a wide variety of foods, some of which include spiders, insects, and other small animals.
Although they will eat butterflies if they are accessible, this component of their diet does not make up a significant portion of their typical fare. The mouse consumes less than one percent of its food in the form of butterflies.
20. Bullet Ant
The bullet ant is a huge species found in the rainforests of South America and Central America. These ants are black.
Its name comes from the excruciating pain that its sting causes, which is so severe that it is comparable to being shot with a bullet.
The bullet ant consumes a wide range of insects, including different species of ants, termites, and even the flesh of young mammals.
Even though they will consume butterflies, this food source is not one of their top choices.
21. Cane Toads
Toads of the species are native to Central and South America regions. They are quite huge and brown, and their skin has warts.
Cane toads consume a wide variety of foods, the most common of which are spiders, insects, and other tiny animals.
22. Chameleons
Although chameleons have not been observed feeding on butterflies in particular, they will ingest any insect that comes their way.
Because of their long tongue, which can reach a length of up to two feet, they can seize their prey from great heights in the trees or great distances.
23. Common Toads
One of the types of animals that eat butterflies is a toad species in the United States; the American toad can thrive in various habitats across the country.
They can appear dark or green in hue, and their skin is pockmarked all over.
Toads consume a wide variety of foods, the most common of which are spiders, insects, and other small animals.
24. Common Wasp
The common wasp is a type of predatory insect that lives in various climates and environments worldwide. In addition to having a stinger, they are yellow and black in hue.
Wasps consume a wide variety of foods, some of which include spiders, insects, and other small animals.
Although they will eat butterflies if they are made available to them, this does not make up a regular portion of their diet.
25. Common Whitetail Dragonfly
The last mention on our list of animals that eat butterflies is the common whitetail dragonfly.
There is a huge species of dragonfly in the United States known as the Whitetail Dragonfly, which you can find in many different regions.
They might be green or brown in appearance, and their wing span can reach up to four inches in length.
As predators, dragonflies consume many insects, including mosquitoes, flies, and other small bugs.
