Chasing Butterflies

Admiration for butterflies has long been my hobby. That is coupled with taking their photos whenever time allows. This hobby will not be complete without the other, as the fulfillment of being a butterfly hobbyist is having a lot of their photographs stored in your files. Some good shots are made into the owner's screen saver and others even have their favorite shots printed and laid in picture frames. Sometimes, a nice picture even makes a lovely greeting card for some friends. The possibilities of using butterfly pictures are endless, and fans range from children to the children once.

Other people with entrepreneurial inklings raise butterflies for sale, and even for export. These days, weddings, thanksgivings, birthdays, baptisms, anniversaries, you name it, and many affairs use butterflies as symbols of happiness. They release the butterflies at specific moment in the program to commemorate whatever theme they are celebrating. Release of butterflies can even signify many meanings, but mostly freedom, peace, tranquility, beauty, forgiveness, accomplishment, Every symbol for butterfly release denotes positive meanings, just as the flapping of the wings signify.

   

LIME BUTTERFLY, Papilio demoleus demoleus' COMMON MORMON Menelaides polytes ledebouria

My fondness for butterflies give an extra meaning for me. I chase them, photograph them in my garden, in our vicinity and in some undomesticated areas with the hope of documenting all the Species Total Count in our town. The happiness of finding one species not yet in the original list gives a certain high, a certain euphoria that might not be relatable for other people. I hope to publish the species photos in a book, but if it will not materialize, then at least others will find them in any other forms, when my curtain closes. At the least they are included in the website of Philippine Lepidoptera. I have them tabulated in matrix, alphabetically arranged with corresponding host plants for their larvae. They are all real as they are from my personal observations.

DARK BLUE TIGER, Tirumala hamata orientalis

LEMON PANSY, Junonia lemonias janome

 

\Those are just examples of pictures i recently took from the garden.  Since the pandemic i have not gone out of the house for any butterfly chasing in the vicinity. At least i have nectar plants intentionally planted to lure them in. And gardening for butterflies is another story.

PALE AWLET, Bibasis gomata lorquini

GLASSY TIGER, Parantica vitrina vitrina

Post Script: I have lots and lots of butterfly pphotos, but blogging after more than a year of not posting gave me lots of difficulties in picture layout. Oh My God i behave like the first time in 2008 when i did my first post. I hope i still regain my patience of repeatedly previewing, editing again and again. My finished post here is not to the best of my liking, but ....here it is, a new beginning!