Believe it or not, it is possible to cure a butterfly wing. It is a delicate job, but if you persist, the butterfly can start flying again; however, before letting her go free, you have to offer her food to recover her energy.
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Treat the Wing
Step 1. Get the butterfly
Before touching it, make sure your hands are clean and dry. When its wings are closed, grab it at the base of the wings just above the body; do not tighten too much, a firm grip is enough to prevent it from freeing itself.
- Contrary to popular belief, you don't hurt the butterfly by simply touching it; it may lose some scales but still manage to fly. The real danger lies in the fact that the wings are very thin and delicate.
- You can keep it upside down to calm it down.
Step 2. Put it in the refrigerator
While it may seem cruel, it actually calms her down enough that she can handle it easily; you're not trying to kill her, just sedate her a little.
- Attach it to a smooth container. A glass beaker is fine for this step; if the butterfly is still able to flap its wings a little, you need to partially cover it, while ensuring enough space for air to circulate.
- Do not leave the insect in the fridge for more than 10 minutes, otherwise it could really die.
Step 3. Prepare the necessary materials
You need a towel and a metal hanger; you also need to get some duct tape or other contact adhesive (which you can find at auto parts stores), scissors, and maybe even tweezers; toothpicks, cotton swabs, baby powder, and light card stock may also be useful (the best is the one with different colors on each side). You may need more wings if the butterfly has lost most of its own; you can find broken pieces where several butterflies gather or use those of dead specimens.
- The contact adhesive can be spread on both surfaces and you have to wait for it to dry before joining the two parts.
- Fold the iron hanger hook; it should form a ring the size of the butterfly's body (excluding wings).
Step 4. Cut the wings to make them uniform
One way to make a minor repair is to simply cut the wings to make them even; in fact, they must be the same to allow the butterfly to fly and modeling them in this way is the simplest solution, if the butterfly has suffered only a slight damage. Grab the insect just above the body with the wings closed and cut the healthy wing to make it look like the ruined one; this method is effective only if less than 1/3 of the broken wing is missing.
- The butterfly feels no pain when you cut off its wing; it's a bit like cutting people's hair.
- This solution is also suitable if you are unable to repair the wing with glue or a splint. In other words, removing the damaged wing or even both can help the butterfly much more than leaving it with damaged wings; it cannot fly, but it can still lay eggs.
Step 5. Immobilize it if it has taken major damage
Lay it out on the towel on a table, lay it flat on the surface with the wings facing down, and place the hanger ring over the butterfly. Make sure to wrap the ring around her body, but press the wings lightly; you can also slightly ballast the other side of the hanger to hold it in place.
- Turn on a soft light to help the insect stay calm.
- Alternatively, you can use tweezers to gently press the body of the butterfly and hold it steady; however, this way you only have one hand to work with.
- Extend the wings by grabbing the edge and gently pushing it out.
Step 6. Prepare a splint if the wing is bent
Cut a thin strip of cardboard, just a few millimeters wide, but it must be long enough to cover the entire line of the fracture; basically, you just need a really small piece.
- Use a toothpick to apply glue to one side of the card; in addition, spread a thin strip of contact adhesive along the crease of the wing. Remove any excess glue residue and let both surfaces dry. Keep in mind that contact adhesive is not like regular glue; it is a special product that adheres by itself when dry.
- Line up the wing perfectly. Press the glued side of the card along the fracture line, tweezers can be helpful in this step. After a moment, release the butterfly; if the glue has made the wing adhere a little to the towel, gently peel it off and then spread a light sprinkle of baby powder over the area so that it does not stick to the other wing in the final stage of the repair. You can use a cotton swab for this.
- An alternative method of repairing a wing is to apply a simple piece of duct tape; once the butterfly is immobilized, you can make it stick to the fracture line or crease. However, this remedy does not guarantee a structure as strong as the splint.
Step 7. Replace the wing if it is badly damaged
If the wing has lost a significant part or is badly damaged, you can reattach the missing part or apply a new one. If it has suffered major damage, remove it leaving a stump at the base on which to attach the "transplant"; make sure the butterfly is lying flat on the cloth throughout the procedure.
- Align the wing. Regardless of whether you're adding a new wing or using part of that drop, it's important to get the previous veins to fit perfectly. If you have chosen to use a new wing, make it approximately the same size as the original and trim it so that it just overlaps the stump a little bit.
- Add the glue. Use a toothpick to apply a contact adhesive to both edges of the wing, the parts that need to overlap slightly and stick together. Remove all excess adhesive and let it dry; once dry, make sure the butterfly is still to prevent the wings from sticking together.
- When the glue is dry, press the two edges of the wing; you can add a thin strip of cardstock using the same gluing technique to create a solid bond. Once the various elements are well glued, spread some baby powder so that the two wings don't stick to each other.
- Test your work for errors before releasing the butterfly; for example, make sure that the other wing does not stick to the glue and that all parts of the body can move.
Method 2 of 2: Feeding the Butterfly
Step 1. Research your specific butterfly
The various species have different needs; some do not eat at all when they are adults, but only when they are still caterpillars. However, most feed on some types of food, usually nectar, which you can replace with a sugar solution.
- Consult a butterfly book or search online to find the species you have and get more information about its eating habits.
- Also, if you find the specific butterfly variety you are dealing with, you can learn which types of flowers it prefers; that way, you can get just those instead of a sugary solution.
- For example, the monarch butterfly is attracted to gentian, as well as other flowers.
Step 2. Provide her with a food source
Because the butterfly is injured, it cannot get food and is also quite weak after the "first aid" procedure; providing her with a source of food allows her to regain the energy to move forward.
- One solution is to find the flowers it usually feeds on; use the information you obtained earlier to locate the wildflowers in your area.
- Place them close to the butterfly and rest it on them so that it can suck the nectar.
Step 3. Make an artificial "nectar"
You can use ingredients already present in the pantry; the mixture should provide enough energy to help the insect recover and search for food on its own.
- Fill a small cup halfway using water at room temperature. Add a spoonful of sugar and mix until dissolved; if you have any difficulties, you can slightly heat the liquid. But remember to wait for it to cool before offering it to the butterfly.
- Make wicks of blotting paper. Roll up a strip of paper 12cm wide and 17cm long; dip one end into the water and let the rest rest on the edge of the cup. The paper absorbs the sugar solution helping the butterfly to drink.
- Place the insect on the edge of the bowl, near the wick, to allow it to suck out the artificial nectar.
- Some butterflies, especially males, can also eat fresh fruits, such as peaches, plums, cherries and oranges; open a fruit to expose its pulp and offer it to the insect.
Step 4. Release the butterfly
Give her a hand so that she can walk on a finger; if it doesn't, take it by the wings, close to the body. You can release it as soon as it has regained strength thanks to the sugar or nectar; there is no need to wait for it to "heal".
- Let it sit on your finger for a minute and then take it outside.
- Wait until she feels ready to fly away. The butterfly absorbs heat from your body before it leaves, an important detail if you put it in the refrigerator to calm it down; for the insect to survive, the outside temperature should be at least 13 ° C.
