Sunday, December 12, 2021

November at Butterfly Wonderland

Last month, Denis and I visited one of our favorite places, Butterfly Wonderland, and now I've finally put together a post about it. Let's get started!

There's a small area just before the conservatory where you can watch butterflies "hatching" and drying out their wings.


Entering the conservatory. Just put my white-haired head in some strong sunlight, and the butterflies flock to me.


They seemed to prefer Denis's hat and back.


At one point, I had one on each leg, two on my back, three on my hand, and three in my hair. People were sitting on a bench watching the butterflies on me.



This one liked my sunglasses. Two people asked if they could photograph my head with all the butterflies on it! LOL






You definitely had to watch your step!




The highlight of the afternoon caused a queue to form. This woman was just ahead of me in line.


This is the first time Denis and I have been here that this butterfly has posed with its wings outstretched. Isn't it gorgeous?


This little boy loved the butterflies. Dad's looking to see what kind this one is.





I thought this one was fake until I touched the stem it was on and it flew away. See the "18" on its wing? That's why I thought it was fake.






This helpful one wanted to make identification as easy as possible.





Had to stop by the reptile house to see if the chameleons were out. This toothy guy looked like he wished there wasn't any glass between us.


This was outside Butterfly Wonderland. I just liked the look of him.


Why do I have this urge to watch King Kong?

 
It's always tough, deciding which photos to share, but I love sharing my favorite places with you all. I hope you enjoyed your visit. We'll be going back to the Musical Instrument Museum on Wednesday!

13 comments:

  1. Oh, Cathy, these are breathtaking!! Just absolutely gorgeous! No wonder you and Denis love it there. And it looks like some of those butterflies liked you two as well! I did, indeed, enjoy the visit, and I'll certainly go there myself if I'm ever able to do that. Can't wait for your post on the Musical Instrument Museum, too.

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    1. And we went back to MIM last week, so I'm really getting behind with posts from there.

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  2. I can see why this is one of your favorite places! How magical. There is a conservatory near us that we like to visit especially in the winter. There are no butterflies, but it is full of plants and flowers and is warm and humid - so unlike our outdoor weather.

    I definitely spied that number 18. That alligator looks sinister. Thanks for sharing your pictures!

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    1. You're welcome, Gretchen. I'm glad you enjoyed them.

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  3. What a special place that must be. I'd love to experience that sometime. It does seem a little dangerous for the butterflies, but I imagine that the visitors are there precisely because they love them so much...so maybe not. That little chameleon you pictured fooled me at first. I thought I was looking at an alligator there for a second.

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    1. Oh... you mean that alligator chameleon? ;-)

      I've been disappointed the last couple of times we've visited because there haven't been any chameleons out and about. For some reason, I love those critters.

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  4. What a wonderful place. One of our favorite day visits is to the Cockrell Butterfly Center at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. I never get tired of seeing all of the butterflies from around the world that are housed there.

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    1. It's a god thing that we don't live closer because then they'd probably have to kick us out every day!

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  5. Your post gave me a perfect reason to stop and check-in Cathy.
    I keep wanting to stop and let you know I follow your blog every day, and am so appreciative of your suggestions and writing. I had been making some occasional comments, but just fell away from the comments. Health problems in my family have caused me to spend less time with the different blogs I follow.

    Nonetheless, I was able to make a birding/all around nature trip to SE Arizona last August for a week - FABULOUS! An 8 person group. Started in Tucson and made a big loop eventually returning to Tucson. More photos than anyone would care to look at, but the "Butterflies and Insects" gallery goes with your post today. The butterflies in Arizona are something special. I hope you like them:

    https://evsphotos.smugmug.com/Birding-Trips/082021-SE-Arizona-Birding-and-Nature-Tour

    One place that was extraordinary that we visited was a back-up place because we were rained out at Fort Huachuca Army base - Karchner Caverns - jaw-dropping amazing.
    Thanks again for everything Cathy.
    Ev Luecke
    St. Charles, Missouri

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    1. I've missed you, Ev, and I'm so sorry to hear that it's due to ill health in your family. I'll send some healing vibes in your direction-- and thanks so much for the link. I'll enjoy taking a look at your photos.

      How cool that you got to visit SE Arizona; it's one of my favorite places!

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  6. New title for you: Butterfly Magnet! How interesting that they flock to you. What an experience.
    Those butterflies are beautiful.

    Thanks for the photos.

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Thank you for taking the time to make a comment. I really appreciate it!