How are butterflies protected from birds?

Hungry swallows and starlings, martins and whip poor wills, vireos and scarlet tanagers devour tons of butterflies through the summer season. But some butterflies escape because they are hard to spot. The large mourning clock blends with the dark tree trunks where it rests. The little brown skippers blend with the broT,:n grasses of summer meadows.

The gaudy admiral, we suspect, has a bitter flavor. A bird who eats one will leave all other admiral butterflies along, Chances are, he will also leave alone the viceroy butterfly who resembles the admiral.