Some days ago I had the privilege of attending a butterfly exhibit at our local botanical garden, Powell Gardens. They had raised a selection of species from the tropical Americas: butterflies about twice as large as any that inhabit my more northerly gardens, ranging from brilliant blues and reds to subtle, leaf-mimicking patterns that flare suddenly to large eyes flashing in the shade like a peacock's tail.
Fortunately, I had my camera along! And Powell Gardens is very photographer-friendly, which made it a pleasant visit. In fact, they were holding a special session for photographers just as I left.
I had only about an hour to wander around the conservatory, clicking the enormous creatures clinging to the undersides of branches, or sipping from lantana blooms. I was interested to see that lantana was one of the chief nectar sources they were supplying, as I found it to be the butterflies' favorite flower in my Arizona garden, with lavender coming second. With bees it was the other way round, but as soon as our autumn butterflies began to arrive from more northern regions, they went straight to the lantana...
But back to the exhibit! I have had to rely on friends for most of my identifications, as I got rather confused by the signage in my hurry to photograph as many of these beauties as I could. I think most of these are correct, but I may still have gotten something mixed up!
Still here they are... Hope you enjoy them!
Weather Diary: Overcast with occasional rainfall; High: 75 F (24 C)/Low: 68 F (20 C); Humidity: 73%-94%
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Kris P (Sunday, 25 August 2019 19:23)
I LOVE butterfly exhibits! I think the last one I saw was part of the DC Fling 2 years ago. Maybe I can encourage my local botanic garden to take a project like that on - I'm sure it would attract a lot of visitors.
Amy@SmallSunnyGarden (Sunday, 25 August 2019 22:54)
Kris - That would be fabulous! I think it's a wonderful way to remind us of the living beauty in other parts of the world, but also in our own gardens. Of course that means I am spending more time thinking about butterfly plants now... ;-)
Barbara H. (Monday, 26 August 2019 07:26)
Lovely captures of beautiful beings.
Amy@SmallSunnyGarden (Monday, 26 August 2019 10:07)
Barbara - Thank you very much! They are indeed beautiful, and it was special to have the chance to photograph them!
Cathy (Sunday, 01 September 2019 14:30)
Beautiful creatures Amy. Thanks for sharing!
Amy@SmallSunnyGarden (Tuesday, 03 September 2019 09:52)
Cathy - So happy you enjoyed them! It was lovely to be in among them!
Jane (Sunday, 08 September 2019 00:40)
Such a variety of butterflies, Amy, and your photos are so clear. We are not seeing so many here, a combination of drought and cold weather, I think. Hopefully as the weather warms and my garden comes back to life, I’ll see more.