Clues to evolution on the wings of butterflies

Assoc Prof Antonia Monteiro from the Dept of Biological Sciences at the NUS Faculty of Science, and the Science Division at Yale-NUS College, shared her team's research on butterfly species that have colourful, concentric circles on the edges of their wings, known as eyespots. The research showed that the butterflies evolved the eyespots about 90 million years ago, possibly as a defence to draw predators away from the more vulnerable parts of the insect's body.

• The Sunday Times, 5 April 2015, Think, p37