A delicate, Eastern Tailed-Blue butterfly rests on a vibrant purple aster bloom, its wings softly spread. An out of focus bee can be seen zipping by in the background above.

Look closely at the bottom of the butterfly’s hindwings; you’ll see tiny, delicate hair-like tails that give the species its name. Here’s a fun fact…the Eastern Tailed-Blue often rubs its hindwings together when perched. This movement makes the tiny tails wiggle, which is thought to trick predators like birds or spiders into attacking the “wrong end” of the butterfly, allowing it to escape with only a small piece of wing missing.

You can get a better look at those hair-like tails by clicking on the photo.  That will bring up a much larger, more detailed image in a new browser tab.

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