As the weather warms and the flowers bloom, butterfly season approaches. Soon these beautiful creatures will flutter about and delight their admirers. In anticipation of their transformation from creepy-crawly bug to attractive, colorful insect, we wondered, why are butterflies colorful? Today, we answer that question with help from National Geographic.

During and after metamorphosis, the biological process when a caterpillar transforms into a butterfly, the insect’s color either camouflages or warns to help protect itself against predators. 

While transforming into a butterfly, the insect is protected by a hard case, called a chrysalis. This casing varies in color depending on the type of butterfly it houses. The paper kite butterfly has a gold and shiny chrysalis while the giant swallowtail chrysalis resembles a snake or part of a tree.  

"It's unknown why a paper kite butterfly chrysalis is gold," Katy Prudic, a biologist at Oregon State University in Corvallis, explained to National Geographic. "But its shininess is used to make the chrysalis hard to detect in a complicated background."

The monarch butterfly also uses color to its advantage. While the chrysalis’ gold pattern is meant to blend in with the tree leaves, the adult monarch’s color and pattern sends a message of warning. It lets potential predators know that it is distasteful and toxic.