Juniper Wings

The wing scales of the juniper hairstreak butterfly shimmer with a green iridescence thanks to crystals called gyroids.

But not all butterflies use gyroids to produce wing color—most get their color from pigments or simpler structures, said study co-author Saranathan. (Watch a video of monarch butterflies congregating in Mexico.)

"Evolutionarily speaking, each of these butterfly families have independently stumbled upon this," Saranathan said. "By using these butterflies as templates, we could reproduce [the gyroids] for artificial technological purposes."

For example, gyroids could be used to produce fade-resistant fabrics that don't require pigments and are visible from all directions.