There are many marvelous evidences of creative design in the
structure and life history of the Monarch butterfly. Only one
example—that of its remarkable forelegs—is considered
in this article.

The female Monarch butterfly has six microscopic needles on
each foreleg. The male Monarch butterfly forelegs have no needles,
only hairs. Some evolutionary scientists say that since the
small 0.2-inch forelegs have no useful purpose, they will eventually
disappear. However, this belief is far from the truth. These
needles are vital for the very survival of the Monarch butterflies.

The reason most evolutionary entomological scientists believe
these small forelegs will disappear is because they have never
studied their use in great detail or from the right perspective.
They believe this complex, beautiful butterfly came into existence
by random chance or accident many millions of years ago. They
assume that since the other two pairs of legs are so much larger
and more useful in grasping and tasting things, that these small
forelegs must be shrinking and eventually will disappear. But
remember that no human has ever seen random chance produce a
complex, organized, living creature or structure. Even if humans
were ever able to make a living cell in the laboratory, it would
be by a complex and well-organized design and construction process,
not by random chance, and the forelegs of the Monarch butterfly
are extremely well-designed for their specific functions.

The Monarch butterfly has six legs. The two forelegs, located
just under the head, are very small, requiring a magnifying
glass or microscope to see them. Figure 1 shows a male and female
foreleg side by side. The tips of each of the female forelegs
carry three pairs of copper colored, microscopic needles. Figure
2 shows a female foreleg magnified by scanning electron microscope
(SEM), obviously a well-designed structure.

The female butterfly in search of a suitable place to lay her
eggs, taps these six foreleg needles into the milkweed several
times causing the milkweed fluids to flow onto the surface of
the leaf. The female tastes and smells the fluids and determines
whether the milkweed is suitable for laying her eggs. She determines
this by use of taste sensors on the bottom of the other four
legs and the smell sensors on the ends of each of the antennae.
Normally she lays only one egg on the bottom of a single milkweed
leaf, but she lays a total of about 600 eggs altogether. The
milkweed must contain enough water and nutrients to supply the
vital requirements for the growth and survival of the baby caterpillar
once it emerges from its egg. Figure 2 shows a female foreleg
magnified 100 times by a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM);
obviously a well-designed structure.

The male forelegs are shaped differently. The SEM photo in
figure 3 shows the tip of a male foreleg magnified 100 times.
Note that the male foreleg has no microscopic needles to make
a chemical analysis of the milkweed because males do not lay
eggs and have no need of needles to pierce the milkweed leaves.
The male Monarch uses its forelegs for maintaining balance,
especially during the mating act. With his forelegs he holds
on to a flower or other object while his other two pairs of
legs hold on to the female.

The taste sensors on the ends of the two large pairs of legs
on both sexes are 2000 times more sensitive to tasting sugars
than the human taste sensors. The red smelling sensors on each
of the antenna tips are about 5000 times more sensitive to smell
than the human nose sensor.

There are many, many more interesting facts about the Monarch
butterfly that point to a great Designer who created it. The
author's book about the Monarch butterfly, From Darkness
to Light to Flight, tells the story of its life cycle. It
reveals the fantastic details of this complex creature in words
and by color pictures and describes how it can migrate as far
as 3000 miles, navigating with astounding precision to a preordained
destination it has never before visited. Truly the Monarch butterfly
not only possesses exquisite beauty, but is also a majestic
specimen of God's creative handiwork. The more we look, and
to whatever depth we look, we see the unmistakable signature
of the Creator.

*Jules H. Poirier is a retired electronics engineer who has
done much original research on the Monarch butterfly.