The blue morphobo button. The Blue Morpho Butterfly is one of the most beautiful and impressive butterflies in the world.

And it's also massive with a wingspan of up to 20 centimeters. That's bigger than my hand.

But it's not just its size that's so impressive, but also its dazzling display.

The brilliant blue wings of the button. but also its dazzling display.

The brilliant blue wings of the butterfly appear to shimmer.

Males are slightly more vivid than the females

and they use their bright coloration to intimidate any rivals that fly into

their territory or confuse predators when they feel threatened with an erratic flash and dazzle

wing display. In fact, they're so impressive that these butterflies have special

significance locally, being considered a powerful representation of the soul and spiritual

transformation.

The shimmering blue color is thought to symbolize healing,

and in Costa Rica, people often make a wish when they lay eyes on one of these stunning insects.

But as we'll discover, these butterflies could also

hold the key to transforming the paints and textiles industry. Hi, I'm Patrick Aye, and welcome to 30 animals that made a smarter from the BBC World Service,

the podcast that explores some of the ways in which animals have

solved human challenges.

If you've enjoyed the series, please spread the word and send us your comments.

You can email us at 30 animals at BBC.com.

In this episode number 29

we'll discover how scientists have been revolutionizing color in paints and

textiles inspired by the shimmer of a butterflies wing. Blue morpho

...