This Malachite, Siproeta stelenes (my gallery link) was seen the other night inside my house on the window screen along with that Rusty-tipped Page shared in yesterday’s blog post. Both are in the Genus Siproeta or generally called “Pages.” Thus yesterday I called them “cousins” traveling together. 🙂 Here are two shots in different night lights, one on my camera and one my cellphone.
The Butterfly Conservancy in the village of Castillo on Lake Arenal near Arenal Observatory Lodge is very good with multiple greenhouses for the different butterfly habitats plus outside natural butterflies with all being native to Costa Rica. And for the history-lovers, this is the little town that was once called Nuevo Arenal after the lake was flooded to make electricity and covered the original town of Arenal. 🙂
I only got useable photos of 14 species with 15 photos here because the White-spotted Prepona is so different with folded wings and open wings. 🙂 And I will just start with him as the first two photos followed by 13 more:
Isabella Tiger Monteverde Butterfly Garden, Monteverde, Costa Rica
Owl Butterfly Monteverde Butterfly Garden, Monteverde, Costa Rica
Malachite Butterfly
Monteverde Butterfly Garden, Monteverde, Costa Rica
Bluewing or Blue-Banded Purplewing
Monteverde Butterfly Garden, Monteverde, Costa Rica
Colubura Dirce
Monteverde Butterfly Garden, Monteverde, Costa Rica
Thoas Swallowtail
Monteverde Butterfly Garden, Monteverde, Costa Rica
Postman
Monteverde Butterfly Garden, Monteverde, Costa Rica
Heliconius Sara
Monteverde Butterfly Garden, Monteverde, Costa Rica
Blue Morpho Butterfly on Charlie Doggett Selvatura Park, Monteverde, Costa Rica
Heliconius Hecale Zuleika
Selvatura Park, Monteverde, Costa Rica
The Selvatura Adventure Park Butterfly House was bigger and fancier and maybe landscaped better or prettier but did not have as many species as the smaller, family-run Monteverde Butterfly Garden which also had a more lively insect exhibit, again not as big, but with more live insects shown up close by one of the owners. If you can go to only one of the butterfly gardens, I would recommend Monteverde. Plus if you go hiking in the Cloud Forest Reserve or Curi-Cancha you will see lots of butterflies in the wild.
Happiness is like a butterfly: the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder. -Henry David Thoreau