What Is It About a Butterfly?
What is it about the fragile beauty of a butterfly that causes us to pause? Hold still with hope? And maybe whisper a prayer as the iridescent flyer lingers?
A group of butterflies is called a kaleidoscope--from the Greek word Kalos for beautiful and eidos for shape. These resilient insects can be found in arid, desert landscapes and tropical rainforests. Here in Arizona, we have 334 varieties. In the U.S., only the state of Texas has more.
After our second blooming of wildflowers after summer rains, we have the most butterflies in Arizona in August and September.
The meadow at the base of the road leading to our cabin is a micro-habitat of wonder. I have documented twenty-five wildflowers is this small area with a footpath the elk use each morning to access the lake.
Yellow sweet clover. Wild blue flax. Hooker evening primrose. Bluebonnet lupine.
The flowers are butterfly magnets.
Gossamer-wing butterflies, blues, hairstreaks, swallowtails and skippers— this little meadow has them all!
It is a place for over-loading the senses, for filling the soul with more than digital images, unending emails, and deadlines. A place for the surround-sound reality of a world created by our God who loves.
As a reminder, you need a warm, sunny day if you plan to see butterflies. Since they are cold-blooded, butterflies need the air temperature to be at least 60 degrees to fly and prefer 82-100 degrees. And no rain!! A raindrop is similar to us being hit by a bowling ball to these delicate-winged creatures.
Arizona State Parks and Trails has a great resource in their summer newsletter this year. It includes detailed info of Arizona’s butterflies, the best parks to find them, and two free downloads of observation logs.
If you are looking for me, I will be in that little meadow observing butterflies. I have at least 300 more species to see in Arizona. And then?
The skies the limit!
One Final Thought About Butterflies:
In the book, The Little Prince, by Antoine De Saint-Exupery, the little prince laments that grownups are difficult people to understand. If you come home and say that you have made a new friend, the grownups ask unimportant questions.
How old is he? How many siblings does he have? Have much does he weigh? How much does his father make?
But they neglect the more important questions:
What does his voice sound like? Does he collect butterflies? What games does he like to play?
The little prince sadly concludes, “Only from these figures do they think they have learned anything about him.”
I hope you are a friend who takes time with the butterflies, who takes time to see.
Earth’s crammed with heaven
and every common bush afire with God
But only he who sees, takes off his shoes.
-Elizabeth Barrett Browning in the poem, Aurora Leigh
