BY BUTTERFLY FARM & GARDENS OF SAN ANTONIO

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

EXCITING NEWS FOR SPRING

We will have butterfly adoptions coming in spring, summer & fall. Monarch butterflies in a lovely bug box with magnifying glass adoptions for release that can be used as part of an education program. (Only for east of the Rockies.) We hope to provide these for $7.00 plus $5.00 shipping. Let us know if this is of interest to you by an e-mail to iracavazos@hotmail.com.

Monday, December 8, 2008

Mezmerizing Yellow for the Winter Blues

Most of our gardens are going into winter dormancy. We will not see our friends the European bee for a while & will miss them. We hope they will come back in the spring, especially since some hives are disappearing all together.

Thursday, December 4, 2008

What's In Your Garden?


ZEBRA IN THE GARDEN

Wonderful sight. It's a jungle out there. Pretty wild!

Monday, October 6, 2008

Emerged Today 2 Giant Swallowtails



This beautiful pair of Giant Swallowtails just emerged from their chrysalises today, Oct. 6th. They are spectacular. Don't you think?

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Gulf Fritillary in Action

GULF FRITILLARY IN ACTION

This lovely butterfly can be found from Argentina through Central America, Mexico, and the West Indies to the southern United States, also the San Francisco Bay area on the west coast. It is bright orange with large silvery spots on the underside of the wings.

The Gulf Frilillary lays its eggs on Passion Vines. On the previous post you were able to see the caterpillar form of this butterfly.

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Queen & Giant Swallowtail

Above you see a Queen caterpillar, a close relative of the monarch that is about to go into the chrysalis stage.
This very ugly looking thing is actually the caterpillar stage of the Giant Swallowtail.
See the lovely Giant Swallowtail below.

Monday, September 8, 2008

Monarch Migration Report

The great Monarch migration has started. You and your class can track it at http://www.learner.org/jnorth/monarch/fall2008/Update090408.html

If you are interested in participating in our local adoption for release program, just email me at iracavazos@hotmail.com and provide an email link for us to contact you.
Enjoy the small video.

Sunday, September 7, 2008

Butterfly Lessons

A buttertly lesson can inspire a child.

Male & Female Black Swallowtail

The male black swallowtail & the female black swallowtail do not look the same. You will be able to see the difference on the video.

Saturday, September 6, 2008

Activity in the garden.

Female Black Swallowtail.
Courtship dance of the male & female Black Swallowtail butterfly.

Thursday, September 4, 2008

IN OUR GARDEN

One of our new Black Swallow Tail butterflies. In the sun it is iridescent blue.
A nocturnal visitor. This hummingbird moth was a delight.
We have some Tiger Swallow Tail butterfly caterpillars eating away at our manderin citrus tree.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Butterfly Farm & Gardens of San Antonio



Our supply of monarch chrysalises and black swallowtail cocoons has increased. We also expect a few tiger swallowtails in the mix. We look forward to a tremendous expansion.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Black Swallowtail

We are looking forward to our black swallowtail caterpillars to look as beautiful as their parent, which should be soon.

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Monarch Born Aug 6th 2008


Just out of their crysalises on Aug 6th were 3 of our monarch butterflies. We have 7 more expected out of their crysalises for tomorrow Aug 7th.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

More Butterflies



More beauties!

Our Baby Monarchs


Eat, eat, eat, then just hang around. These lovelies will undergo a marvelous transformation into monarch butterflies.

A Dragon Visits the Butterflies




I'm not a dragon and that's not my best side. Oops!

Monday, July 14, 2008

Butterfly Farm Visit

A visit to a butterfly farm is a fun experience. Here we see the joy this friendly butterfly brought to all present.

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Butterflies, Butterflies, Butterflies



A few of the butterflies that have visited. There are more to come. We are excited!

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Hummingbird & Butterfly Activity

The hummingbirds co-exist with the honey bee. They have accessed the same sources of nectar all their existence. They do have to work around each other, but the honey bee does not attack the hummingbird. At times the bees do overwhelm the feeder. When that happens, we give the feeder a quick wipe and move it's address ( We move it to another part of the garden).

We have had a lovely time watching the butterflies that visit the garden as well. Enjoy!

Sunday, June 29, 2008

Our Sweet Friend

Hummingbirds are creatures of habit. Once you see where one that frequents your feeders perches you can set up to photograph it at that same location. Your friend will most likely return to that same perch frequently.
Just a reminder to keep your feeders clean. Moldy feeders are unhealthy for your hummers.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

A Few Minutes in the Garden

Spending a few minutes in my sister's butterfly garden allowed me to video some of the hummingbirds that visit. She places sun flower seeds on the stump in the middle of the garden for a pair of Cardinals also.

Butterflies, hummingbirds, cardinals, and at night the solar lights attract bugs that in turn attract toads. A busy little garden.

Friday, June 6, 2008

A Royal Visit

Yesterday, June 5th, my sister's garden received it's first royal visit. The first Queen butterfly of the season that visited her butterfly garden. She was so excited.

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

STRIKE A POSE


When photographing your hummers, you will find that they are quick and that your automatic focus can not keep up. It is then that you will find the construction of a perch very handy. These mini feeders come with a red plastic covered wire that you can use to hang your feeder or bend it to construct a perch for your hummers to land on. Your hummers do not have to land to feed. This is for your benefit more than their's.
Having a perch will allow you to set your camera to manual focus and pre-focus to the perch area. Then just wait for your hummer to land and snap away to your heart's content.