Rare butterfly has best of both worlds when it comes to sex
In the fly-by night world of butterfly mating, one very special Great Mormon butterfly born at London’s Natural History Museum can use the line “More man than you’ll ever be, more woman than you’ll ever have,” with more confidence than most.
Luke Brown couldn’t believe his eyes when he spotted the gynandromorphic – or dual sex – specimen flying through the museum’s puparium, only the third occurrence he’s ever seen in a career that includes hatching more than 300,000 butterflies.
It is not only the wings that are affected, he explained. The butterfly's body is split in two, its sexual organs are half and half, and even its antennae are different lengths.
"It is a complete split; part-male, part-female... welded together inside," he told the BBC.
Museum-goers will only have a short period of time to see the live wonder before it reaches the end of its month-long life span, but it will be added to the museum’s collection once it passes on.
Full story at BBC.
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