El Mariposario

Ever since telling La Niña the story of how butterflies would land on my hand in Malaysia, she has wanted her own butterfly landing experience. She certainly honed her skills in Costa Rica — and became a butterfly catching expert. The secret is to be patient, still, calm and gentle.

The right photo is of a Blue Morpho, one of the more common butterflies found in Costa Rica.

But, it’s not blue.

Correct. It’s not blue — because when the Blue Morpho closes it’s wings it blends in with the surrounding vegetation. However, when the butterfly opens its wings it morphs into this:

Below is some kind of swallowtail with which La Niña is demonstrating her expert butterfly whispering abilities. (This is commendable. It’s tough to be calm and patient when you’re little.)

Next, we discovered this beautiful example of a Doris Longwing. It was so proud of its colours that it actually posed. However, it was coy and didn’t seem to want to land on anyone’s hand.

Finally, here are some more swallowtails feasting on a watermelon.