Butterflies Resting – on Me

While I was manning the exit at Brookside Gardens’ Wings of Fancy the first hour after it opened yesterday, I had 3 different butterflies decide to take a rest on me. The first was a blue morpho that sat on my left hand. It must have felt very secure since it sat still while I got my cell phone out, entered the security code, started the camera app, and braced the cell phone on my arm to get pictures – moving in closer and closer. The butterfly’s wings were tattered but the orange in the upper legs and the palpi (between the eyes) was very distinct. The proboscis is neatly coiled.

The second butterfly was another blue morpho that started out on my sandal. I crossed my leg, so I could get a get a closer shot. The butterfly was very interested in the strap of my sandal and then my ankle with its proboscis. The wings were in better shape that the first butterfly; notice the yellow and orange color toward the outer edges of the wing.

The third butterfly was a malachite that was on my hat. A visitor told me I had a butterfly on my hat and it stayed there when I took my hat off so I could see it! I had to one-hand the phone again but was pleased with the pictures I got of this butterfly. I like the patterning of the underside of the malachite butterflies…even more than the brighter green of the other side of the wings.

I’ve never been so lucky to have so many butterflies resting on me during a visit to the exhibit. They were on other people as well…something special about yesterday.