If you're a regular listener of 30 animals that made a smarter, you'll know that we are

big fans of butterflies.

In season 1, we featured two inventions inspired by these beautiful creatures.

We heard how the shape of a butterfly egg has been used to help design a butterfly house,

and we looked at how the shimmering blue wings of the blue morpho butterfly have transformed

the way we make paints and textiles.

Both are fascinating examples of how nature has inspired us, so if you haven't already

heard those episodes, add them to your list and be sure to check them out.

As for this episode, we are going back to butterflies once again because it turns out

they're still inspiring us.

This time we're travelling to South and Southeast Asia to the common Rose Butterfly.

Now, if you live in this region, you're probably very familiar with this species because

it thrives here.

In lowland forests, scrublands, hillsides and botanical gardens, it's particularly easy to

spot during the monsoon.

The Rose Butterfly, and I love this, belongs to a class of butterflies known as swallow

tails, which means its bottom wing is forked in a way that resembles a swallow's tail.

The name Rose comes from its bright crimson body and crimson markings, which are the

colour of a red rose.

It also has striking white spot markings, and the combination of these bright splashes of

colour serve to attract attention to the butterfly and advertise the fact that it has acid

in its body tissue which makes it poisonous to predators like birds and reptiles.

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