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Butterflies belong to the order Lepidoptera which means scale wings.
Butterflies are the only insects to have their wings covered with millions of
scales. 
The scales give the butterflies their color and help them fly by
trapping air between the individual scales. There are about 15,000 butterflies
in the world and ten times that many moths or about 150,000 species. As with
other insects, their body is divided into three part: head, thorax and abdomen.
Butterflies vs Moths
Butterflies differ from moths in several ways:
Butterflies
| antennae is thicker at the tip |
day fliers |
hold their wings up over the body when at rest |
brightly colored |
hind wing has an extra lobe where the wing
meets the thorax |
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Moths
| antennae feathery or thinner at the tip |
night fliers |
hold their wings flat when at rest |
dull-colored |
front and hind wings connected with one or more
spines |
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There are exceptions. There are brightly colored moths
and
d ull butterflies.
Some butterflies sit with their wings open. Some moths fly during the day.
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