Butterfly
- This article is about generic butterflies sometimes seen in the Super Mario franchise. For the enemy in Donkey Kong 3, see Butterfly (Donkey Kong 3). For the microgame from WarioWare: D.I.Y., see Butterflies (microgame).
| Butterfly | |||
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 Artwork of two butterflies from Mario Party: Star Rush | |||
| First appearance | Super Mario Bros. Print World (1991) | ||
| Latest appearance | The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) | ||
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Butterflies appear in the Super Mario franchise as both ambient and interactable creatures. Various species are based on butterflies, the most recurring of which are Flutters.
History[edit]
Super Mario Bros. Print World[edit]
Butterflies first appear in Super Mario Bros. Print World as one of the selectable borders.
Super Mario series[edit]
Super Mario 64 / Super Mario 64 DS[edit]
Butterflies in Super Mario 64 and Super Mario 64 DS are seen flying around in a few stages, as well as outside the Mushroom Castle. They appear in groups of three and have two variations: In the first variation, one butterfly turns into a 1-UP Mushroom upon being hit by Mario, and the other two do not transform into anything. In the second variation, one butterfly turns into a 1-UP Mushroom, and the other two transform into bombs similar to a flame thrower or iron ball and chase Mario until they hit him or something else. In either situation, the butterflies explode.[1][2] Exploding butterflies can be found only on Tall, Tall Mountain and Tiny-Huge Island. In this game, butterflies are violet with white spots on their wings.
Super Mario Sunshine[edit]
Butterflies in Super Mario Sunshine can be eaten by a Yoshi to get different items. Yellow butterflies yield regular coins, blue butterflies yield Blue Coins, and green butterflies yield 1-Up Mushrooms. In this game, butterflies are usually found fluttering around in groups, and they are rarely by themselves like in Super Mario 64.
Super Mario Galaxy[edit]
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Butterflies in Super Mario Galaxy appear throughout various galaxies, mostly for ambient purposes. However, the player can point the Star Pointer at butterflies and collect one Star Bit per butterfly by moving the pointer around while still touching it, but this does not work while Mario or Luigi is on the Comet Observatory. If Mario or Luigi sleeps near butterflies, they will sit on Mario's or Luigi's head.
Super Mario Galaxy 2[edit]
Butterflies in Super Mario Galaxy 2 are shimmering and golden, and they appear on the Starting Planet in the Sky Station Galaxy (three also appear on the Peewee Geo Planet later in the galaxy), but only while Co-Star Mode is active. The player can use the Co-Star Luma to spin the butterflies in the same way as they would any other object. When spun, each butterfly releases three Star Bits, after which they disappear. They also disappear the second that Co-Star Mode is deactivated, though when it is used again, they return. If spun by the Co-Star Luma, they are gone for good. These golden butterflies also appear on the Earth Planet, the Yoshi Tower Planet, the Fossil Planet, the Solar System Planet, and the Cone Planet in the Yoshi Star Galaxy. A different variety of butterfly also appears on the Stone Mountains Planet in the Fluffy Bluff Galaxy. These particular butterflies are purple and are present for decoration only.
Super Mario Odyssey[edit]
The Lost Kingdom in Super Mario Odyssey is home to a large number of multicolored butterflies; they are mostly found in colonies and scatter slightly when Mario invades them. Apart from the ornamental butterflies, there is also a considerably larger, glowing butterfly that holds a Power Moon. It is always found east from Rocky Mountain Summit, resting on the edge of a narrow cliff jut. It flies away if Mario comes close to it, returning to the same spot after Mario leaves; however, it does not react to being approached by Cappy. There are also butterflies that resemble large whites and swallowtails in the Wooded Kingdom and Mushroom Kingdom, respectively.
Mario Party 4[edit]
Butterflies in Mario Party 4 appear in yellow, red, and blue varieties in the minigame Butterfly Blitz, where they are worth one point, two points, and three points, respectively.
Donkey Kong Jungle Beat[edit]
Butterflies in Donkey Kong Jungle Beat are yellow and appear sporadically, and if clapped, they turn into one beat each.
Yoshi's Woolly World / Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World[edit]
In Yoshi's Woolly World and Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World, among the yarn bows scattered throughout the course Knitty-Knotty Windmill Hill, there are two that begin flying like butterflies when licked. Shortly afterwards, they attach themselves to a surface; licking them again in this state causes Yoshi to unravel the block of yarn that surface pertains to, revealing items.
Yoshi's Crafted World[edit]
In Yoshi's Crafted World, there are five colorful butterfly crafts that are made of cut paper with drawn faces and black pipe cleaner antennae in Spring Sprung Trail, which the pink Blockafeller requests. Their wings are pink, light yellow, light green, and light blue. Some grassland courses also have yellow butterfly crafts used as props by Shy Guys hiding behind some cardboard bushes.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie[edit]
Butterflies appear in The Super Mario Bros. Movie as wildlife in the Mushroom Forest. Some of them appear in their design from Super Mario 64.
Gallery[edit]
Border from Super Mario Bros. Print World
Model from Super Mario 64
Texture from Super Mario 64
Artwork from Super Mario Sunshine
Artwork from Mario Party 4
Screenshot of Mario Party 4
Model from Super Mario Galaxy
Screenshot from Super Mario Odyssey
Craft from Yoshi's Crafted World
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ちょう / チョウ[?] Chō |
Butterfly | |
| Dutch | Vlinder[?] | Butterfly | |
| French | Papillon[?] | Butterfly | |
| German | Schmetterling[?] | Butterfly | |
| Italian | Farfalla[?] | Butterfly | |
| Polish | Motyl[?] | Butterfly | |
| Portuguese | Borboleta[?] | Butterfly | |
| Spanish | Mariposa[?] | Butterfly |
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ MrRobertZ (August 21, 2006). Super Mario 64 - Convert All Butterflies. YouTube. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
- ^ UncommentatedPannen (October 26, 2018). Butterfly Triplets. YouTube. Retrieved August 31, 2020.
