There may be a very good reason why so many butterflies are orange — they are evolving to resemble the monarch so birds will think twice before eating them, even if they are perfectly edible. © 2019 Lynn Rosenblatt & Monarch Butterfly USA  |   All Rights Reserved. Third grade classes in Decatur originally suggested the species. List of official state insects; butterflies, bugs, beetles, dragonflies, bees; insect symbols for all 50 states; photos and fun facts. In this way they may be protected from being eaten by a predator. Entries are listed below in alphabetical order (A-to-Z). Minnesota State Insect. You can always go back to the Insects by State Listing. By submitting images to us (BeetleIdentification.org) you acknowledge that you have read and understood our Disclaimer as it pertains to "User-Submitted Content". Both caterpillar and butterfly are brilliant in color as a warning because the toxins ingested from the milkweed plant are poisonous to predators. Follow @Symbol_update. Principal Insect Behaviorist - Illinois Natural History Survey Affiliate - Entomology: spencer1@illinois.edu 2089 Forbes Natural History Building MC-652: Stone, Chris Medical Entomologist - Illinois Natural History Survey Affiliate - Entomology: cstone@illinois.edu MC-652 Lab site: Warnow, Tandy Official State Insects (insects, butterflies, bugs) This page offers an all inclusive list of insect symbols regardless of the specific designation of each state. It's also called a "pupa." If bugs make you squeamish, you’ll want to skip this article. Much has been written about the annual movement of millions of adult monarch butterflies from their overwintering areas of Mexico to nearly the entire temperate zone of North America. Both caterpillar and butterfly are brilliant in color as a warning (the monarch butterfly ingests toxins from the milkweed plant which make it poisonous to predators). Official State Insect of Illinois Illinois designated the iconic monarch butterfly as the official state insect in 1975, the result of lobbying by Illinois schoolchildren (a third grader from Decatur was the first to suggest the monarch as state insect). SPONSORSHIPS ADVERTISING. Several other states have chosen the monarch as their state insect or butterfly, and for good reason—they are beautiful, wide-spread, and known for spectacular migrations. The stages between molts are called instars, and after the last instar, the caterpillar sheds its skin one more time. None. The monarch butterfly is the official state insect of Alabama, Idaho, Illinois, and Texas, and it is the state butterfly of Minnesota, Vermont, and West Virginia. State insects are designated by 48 individual states of the fifty United States.Some states … Monarch Butterfly Facts. For its state insect, it claims one of the most well-known butterflies of the states. Vermont State Insect. By Photo by and (c)2009 Derek Ramsey (Ram-Man) - Self-photographed, GFDL 1.2, https://commons.wikime, This article is about the state insect of Illinois, the monarch butterfly. Also known as latex, sap like this contains toxic alkaloids that protect the plant from most animals and insects that might eat the leaves. The magical metamorphosis begins when the female monarch searches for milkweed and lays her precious eggs. Arizona has not designated an official state insect, although they do recognize an … Official State "Insects" This page offers a list of only those insect symbols that were officially adopted as state insects as opposed to official state butterflies or bugs.. Permalink Despite the chaos that 2020 has brought us, the Illinois statewide corn and soybean insect survey was completed this past summer. The Department has authority to collect specimens of plant material in order to make cultures and positive identifications of plant pests. Both the caterpillar and adult monarch butterfly are brilliant in color as a warning to predators – the monarch ingests toxins from the milkweed plant which are poisonous. This colorful butterfly is migratory, and large numbers spend the warm months in these states … Milkweed plants are very common in Illinois. Monarch butterflies are threatened and being considered for protection under The U.S.