A Marbled White butterfly struggles to sip nectar from clover flowers on a windy day in Gloucestershire, United Kingdom. (June 21)

In the captured footage, you can see the insect’s fore-wings folded back over the hind-wings delta-style to reduce the drag caused by the wind.

Chaos theory suggests that when a butterfly flaps its wing on one side of the world, the movement of molecules might lead to a hurricane somewhere else after a very long series of intermediate events. What it doesn't mention is how hard that makes it for butterflies in the other location to feed!
The other day, I was marvelling at a Marbled White butterfly, struggling to sip nectar from clover flowers, on a windy day on Rodborough Common near Stroud. Far from flapping its wings and causing high winds, it had its fore-wings folded back over the hind-wings, delta-style to reduce the drag, and was probing precisely with its unfurled proboscis into each little purple flower in the inflorescence - a tricky task while being buffeted by the wind whistling over the hillside. When it did briefly open its wings to fly from one flower head to another, it stuck me how extraordinary the whole phenomenon of butterfly flight is. Look at the size of the thorax compared to the wing and consider the strength needed in the flight muscles to flap - which some migratory butterflies do for days to travel hundreds or even thousands of miles. Unbelievable!
In the meantime, do enjoy my 98th #BrightenYourDay video to reflect on #nature in #Covid19 #lockdown - then pop outside and watch the butterflies where YOU live!
For more on The Butterfly Effect, see: https://fractalfoundation.org/resources/what-is-chaos-theory/
For more on the Marbled White, Melanargia galathea, see: https://ukbutterflies.co.uk/species.php?species=galathea