How long do butterflies live?
The average life-span of a butterfly is only a couple of weeks. Most of the lepidopteran life cycle is spent in the larval stage as a caterpillar. The purpose of the adult stage is mainly to find a mate and lay eggs. With that said there are some species that live at either extreme. The moths of the family Saturniidae, for instance, only live about a week and do not eat the whole time. Butterflies belonging to the genus Heliconius can live for up to nine months in the wild.
