milkweed butterfly
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of milkweed butterfly
An Americanism dating back to 1875–80
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Naturalists recently witnessed several species of milkweed butterfly harassing, subduing and subsequently feeding on milkweed caterpillars, presumably to get their fill of toxic alkaloids inside the larvae.
From New York Times
It is a milkweed butterfly, and will serve as a good introduction to this new world of winged life.
From Project Gutenberg
The measure is taken to ensure that tens of thousands of purple milkweed butterflies are not hit by vehicles as they migrate.
From BBC
This butterfly has assumed almost the exact color and markings of the milkweed butterfly, which is distasteful to birds, and hence enjoys peculiar freedom from the attacks of enemies.
From Project Gutenberg
The caterpillar of the monarch or milkweed butterfly is a very striking creature.
From Project Gutenberg
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
