I have had two butterflies just hanging out on the ceiling for weeks and now they have both moved (one is on the outside of a pair of curtains, don't know where the oth one is yet). What are they doing? I thought butterflies just died and we got new ones each year. Thanks for any insight.
The one that is on the curtains is at squishing height now, can't see it lasting long (maybe it will get fed up of the curtains being opened and closed and move somewhere safer). Thanks for your answers though.
Many Vanessid butterflies overwinter as hibernating adults (eg. Red Admiral, Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell, Comma). As yours are inside your house, it may be too warm for them to properly hibernate and they may not survive. Ideally, they want somewhere that is frost free but cold enough that their metabolism reduces to a minimum. They are most often found in garden sheds.
The ones that I have most often encountered in winter were small tortoiseshells