Specieswatch: the bluffing peacock butterfly

A flash of colourful wings accompanied by loud hisses helps defenceless insect unsettle predatorsTis the season to be disturbing hibernating butterflies, and the naturalist Lucy Hodson recently posted a video of a memorable encounter with a peacock.The butterfly was beneath a log and, its sleep interrupted, flashed its wings bearing vivid blue and maroon eyespots. Most strikingly, it also emitted a series of loud hisses that viewers judged like the rustling of petticoats or a whispered "pissaff". Continue reading...