Wednesday, June 26, 2013

MORE BUTTERFLIES . . OR IS THAT BUTTERFLYS

Continuing from yesterday our tour of Butterfly Wonderland on the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community I can now show you much more of the creatures we observed yesterday.



I'm using a small directory the museum (if I may call it that) provided to identify some of these.  The bottom one is, I believe, a Paper Kite.


I believe this is one of the many Blue Morphos in the atrium.  Doesn't look blue, you say?  That's because this is the underside.  The tops of the wings are a brilliant blue.


You can catch a glimpse of both sides here as this one was settling.


This one may be a Giant Owl, from what I can tell.  It's not, of course, an owl but that's the name given to this type of butterfly.







As you can see, they are in all colors, shapes and sizes.





Butterflies taste through their feet.  Here a large group of them have found a bowl of cut fruit put out for them.

And they're not above hitch-hiking a ride on their human visitors.  Here's the one that latched onto my flowery shirt and stayed with me throughout my tour of the aviary.  He had to be shaken off when we were leaving.


With his wings folded he may have been taking a nap.

Here's another I caught on a fellow visitor's back.


It seems to fit right in.  Obviously they seem to like these Hawaiian shirts.

Tomorrow I'll show you some of the non-butterfly wildlife at the Wonderland.

9 comments:

  1. Beautiful, peaceful little creatures aren't they? Very nice....thanks for sharing. ;)

    S

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  2. Incredible stuff you've posted. I'm not aware of the Wonderland, but it looks extraordinary.

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  3. Such delicate beauty. A scientific colleague of mine, on one occasion, walked around for some hours with a very large butterfly on the front of his shirt. It moved a little from time to time, but only to catch some extra sunshine. But this is your post, not mine :)

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  4. Looks like a fun place to visit. I had no idea there were so many kinds of butterflies. Sharon posted some pictures from this place too.

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  5. Butterflies always make me feel happy. Ever seen the monarchs?

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    Replies
    1. I have seen some but, to my regret, I missed the great migration when we lived in Mexico.

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  6. Glad you went out there. It really is a fun place isn't it? I may go back this weekend just for fun. After all, it will be too hot to do anything else.

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    1. It's a fabulous place but I believe I'll be holed up at home this weekend.

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