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Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Missed the Butterflies

When i indulged in Hoyas, the short weekend at home is lost to them. Just looking at them, familiarizing myself on the characteristics of the leaf designs, colors and habits of the vines, manner of growing, etc really use all my time. I look at every leaf axils as there might already be a spur ready to flower, or the previous spurs that might have lengthened or stayed the same. I can see the butterflies fluttering around, but i relegated my attention to the hoyas. I hope the butterflies will not be jealous.

 Lantana is a real favorite of butterflies. You will notice the two above, however the other species are so fast i can't shoot them.

 Again this one is on Lantana camara. Can you blame me for planting an invasive species? Tirumala limniace orestilla

 Turnera subulata is also a magnet for some butterflies, bees and other insects. I don't know the reason though, why the flowers only open for a few hours in the morning before noon, and close the rest of the afternoon. We have a lot of these scattered on the ground, so the critters are happy. Pareronia boebera boebera 

Tirumala limniace orestilla again. We have many of these.

 another Hypolimnas bolina on the Lantana camara

 Even the blue Duranta repens is a favorite of butterflies. However, it is already tall limiting my accessibility to shoot them. Anyway, i already pruned it for more young shoots to emerge and more flowers. However, this Hypolimnas bolina male seems not to be very picky among flowers.

 This Pentas lanceolata is growing nicely, but the pink and violet counterpart is so slow. This common mormon (Papilio polytes male) loves this. Not many butterflies though want the pentas nectar.

 Comon mormon (Papilio polytes female) loves the Ixora more than the pentas. I based these conclusions from my observation, but i don't fully espouse them for lack of scientific merit. I just see them more often in the plants above.

They are doing the courtship ritual, did so for a few minutes, I was able to take some shots, but rains drove them away. I haven't seen where they eventually hide. That was a lovely weekend.

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32 comments:

  1. RoslynAugust 28, 2013 at 2:45 PM

    Andrea, your butterflies are wonderful. We can't have lantana in our gardens here. It is a declared weed. We do have pentas and butterflies love it when it's in fower.

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    1. AndreaAugust 28, 2013 at 5:25 PM

      Hi Missy, thanks for visiting again. It is an invasive species also with us, but butterflies love them, so i have to plant it. I am glad our government is not strict like yours.

      Delete
  2. Sue CatmintAugust 28, 2013 at 8:42 PM

    Hi Andrea, beautiful butterflies, beautifully photgraphed. Lantana is an especially noxious weed here in Australia. It grows 15 feet high and wide, has smothered millions of hectares of bushland and pasture, and nobody has worked out how to get rid of it.

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    1. AndreaAugust 28, 2013 at 9:32 PM

      Hello Sue, glad to see you here. Lantana, though a bit invasive here too, is not as obnoxious as Mimosa diplotricha, an introduced species and is being raised as ornamental in temperate climes. When Lantana grows, it creates an undercanopy area which hides free ranged chicken during our dry season. And it is easily controlled when determined.

      Delete
  3. UnknownAugust 29, 2013 at 6:27 PM

    Wow! you have managed to capture many varieties of butterflies. It's always exciting to see them fluttering around the garden. Sometimes they can be elusive but othertimes, they perched motionless for photo shoots.

    Over here in Malaysia the lantanas growing in the wild and by roadsides are invasive, but not the hybrids and the dwarf species which can be rather temperamental.

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    1. AndreaAugust 31, 2013 at 12:41 PM

      Many species are still elusive, and i get so disappointed most of the times. The hybrid lantana must be cared for unlike the natives, and as you said temperamental. So i rather plant a lovely native, but mine is also imported from a very far island.

      Delete
  4. UnknownAugust 29, 2013 at 10:44 PM

    I love the photos you got. Thank you! I now know that the butterflys I spottd in my garden on Tuesday were the common Mormon. Awesome! I also had some Monarchs and some swallowtail. I am thinking that they are on a migration. I do plants lots of plants to encourage butterflys and I avoid using pesticides or even fungicides because I realize if I want butterflys Im going to get the other life stages which means putting up with some chewing! I will be following you to learn more.
    If you want to look at my garden and give me any ideas please stop over at Mermaid at frog hollow.blogspot.com
    Thanks
    Kate Maryon

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    1. AndreaAugust 31, 2013 at 12:39 PM

      Butterflies larvae are very host specific, so you should learn the plants that your favorite butterflies eat. But nectar plants are usually common for most of them. Thanks for dropping by.

      Delete
  5. AngieAugust 30, 2013 at 3:19 AM

    What a lovely selection of butterflies. They are certainly enjoying all you have on offer for them. It's nice to learn about other species from around the world.

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    1. AndreaAugust 31, 2013 at 12:37 PM

      Hi Angie, the tropics' provides biodiversity not only on plants but also in insects like butterflies, there's more where it came from! thanks for the visit.

      Delete
  6. Rambling WoodsAugust 30, 2013 at 5:18 AM

    Oh what a beautiful selection of butterflies. I really enjoyed yours as there were so very few here in my yard. Thank you for linking into Nature Notes Andrea...Michelle

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    1. AndreaAugust 31, 2013 at 12:35 PM

      Hello Michelle, there's actually a lot more but i can't pin them in photos.

      Delete
  7. RNSANEAugust 30, 2013 at 8:44 PM

    You have an amazing talent for photography. The butterfly photos are just phenomenal. it doesn't seem like you neglected them at all. Your garden is just beautiful - such a nice variety of flowers and they certainly seem to attract butterflies.

    My Orange You Monday Post is at:

    http://rnsane.blogspot.in/2013/08/orange-you-glad-its-friday-53-pacifica.html

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    1. AndreaAugust 30, 2013 at 9:09 PM

      Hi Carmen, thanks for your visit and kind words. Even if you don't put the link above, your name will lead me to your site. If you want to see more butterflies, i also have them in previous posts, lots of them.

      Delete
  8. joanneAugust 31, 2013 at 2:10 AM

    I have so much respect and adulation for anyone who can shoot these ever-moving beauties.....

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    1. AndreaAugust 31, 2013 at 12:23 PM

      Oh thank you so much joanne, you should know i spent a lot of time chasing them, sometimes sacrificing eating, haha! And I had a lot of disappointments too because many of the species just don't alight long enough for me to shoot! I hope you visit again.

      Delete
  9. Melanie J WattsAugust 31, 2013 at 2:30 AM

    Lovely photos Andrea and great subject matter. You have such a diverse selection of species visiting your garden.

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    1. AndreaAugust 31, 2013 at 12:24 PM

      I appreciate your 'appreciation', LOL, i am lost for words! Actually, there's a lot of them still roaming without any documentation, because they don't allow me, am so frustrated with them!

      Delete
  10. LmkazmierczakAugust 31, 2013 at 4:07 AM

    Wow, great shots...love your last one in-flight! My OYGIF: http://lauriekazmierczak.com/wired/

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    1. AndreaAugust 31, 2013 at 12:26 PM

      I appreciate your visit and comment. I love it too even if it's a bit blurred.

      Delete
  11. EG CameraGirlAugust 31, 2013 at 8:21 PM

    Super shots of the butterflies and blossoms!

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  12. TexWisGirlAugust 31, 2013 at 9:19 PM

    they're so beautiful!

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  13. AnonymousAugust 31, 2013 at 9:26 PM

    Magnificent shots of nature's beautiful butterflies ~ carol, xo

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  14. eileeninmdAugust 31, 2013 at 10:37 PM

    Gorgeous collection of butterfly images! The flowers are lovely! Have a happy weekend!

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  15. mariaSeptember 1, 2013 at 12:24 AM

    Gorgeous butterflies. How I wish I have a garden with lots of flowers so I too, can watch the pretty butterflies.

    Thanks for sharing your beautiful photos on OYGIF. Happy weekend Andrea.

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  16. LeaSeptember 1, 2013 at 1:51 AM

    Beautiful butterflies!
    Pretty flowers, too!
    Lea
    Lea's Menagerie

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  17. UnknownSeptember 1, 2013 at 5:21 PM

    Beautiful flowers and butterflies!

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  18. Beth at PlantPostingsSeptember 2, 2013 at 10:09 AM

    Great shots! I planted Lantana this year, too. Not only do the butterflies and pollinators like them, but I like them, too! They're so bright and colorful you can't be blue around them.

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  19. DonnaSeptember 3, 2013 at 2:36 AM

    Just fabulous flowers and spectacular butterflies...I miss ours as they are not visiting.

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  20. MaiThreeBoyzSeptember 3, 2013 at 10:28 AM

    Wonderful photos! I only know these flowers by there local name, like the santa ana. I'm glad to find their scientific names here. kudos to you for your knowledge and excellent photography!

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  21. Jenn JilksSeptember 5, 2013 at 8:01 AM

    Spectacular!!!!

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  22. JoceeSeptember 5, 2013 at 8:10 AM

    Beautiful butterflys, you must have a lovely healthy environment for them to do so well.

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