Well, in all actuality, you never will. Butterflies don’t have kidneys and a bladder like mammals do. Therefore, technically, they don’t urinate, but they do have a way of getting rid of excess fluid from their bodies. Butterflies, especially males, like to engage in a behavior call puddling. It involves ingesting fluid from puddles in order to extract minerals from the water. Males require these extra minerals to produce sperm cells and reproductive hormones. Females also sometimes engage in puddling, but not nearly as often as males do. Once the needed minerals are extracted the water runs through a series of tubes, called Malpighian tubules, that run through the abdomen to a small hole on the underside of the abdomen where it is excreted. I happened to find this gorgeous giant swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes) digging around in some leaf debris in my front yard. As I watched, it slightly arched its abdomen and shot out a few drops of fluid. It repeated this behavior over and over again, giving me a chance to get these photos. At first, I thought it was a female laying eggs (although most butterflies lay eggs on the host plants for the caterpillars to eat). Then I noticed a small spot of water on one of the leaves behind the butterfly and realized it was eliminating. I don’t know about you, but I had never seen a butterfly eliminate water before. Some of you may find all of this disgusting, but I found it fascinating. I had never actually seen this behavior before, and I do find insects and their behavior to be so interesting. So what do you think, gross or cool?