McCloskey advances on the butterfly, its body immobilised on the table with a loop of wire. One of its wings is stretched out - black inky veins running through a delicate orange membrane.

A vapour sensor based on an exact replica of the butterfly-scale design will most probably be unable to selectively quantify more than ten individual vapours from their mixture. A man-made ...

The delicate flutter of butterfly wings carries the profound message of hope and ecological harmony. Yet, these graceful ...

Another theory is that the butterfly looks like a gecko on tree trunks, which real geckos (a major predator of this species) would avoid. David says, 'Wings sometimes bear patterns that conjure up ...