Spring 2023 in the Butterfly Rainforest

One of the things we love most about our Butterfly Rainforest exhibit is the lovely variety of colors in both the butterflies and the plants.

There were so many vibrant flowers and plants this spring, from the full white bloom of the Amazon lilies and the curling pink petal of the anthurium, to the soft color of the lavender bells and silver-green begonia leaves. All put on a show this spring!

Two white flowers, one with petals open, the other loosely closed.

Amazon lily in full bloom. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Single petal flower, the center of the flower is a rich pink, the base a soft green.

Anthurium flower. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Small link flowers with white stamen blooming in a cluster from a maroon stem.

African blue basil flowers. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

pale purple flowers and unopened buds growing from a center stem

Lavender bell flowers Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

The soft pink dombeya flowers. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Several orange and black butterflies and a cluster of pink flowers.

The pink flowers of the dombeya which bloom in a gorgeous ball of flowers were very popular with the clipper butterflies. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

silver colored leabes with green near the center of each leaf

Even without flowers the silver limbo begonia is eye-catching. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Tropical ironweed flowers. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

cluster of pink flowers with the sun shinning through the petals

Pink shasta begonias, just one of many species of begonias you may spot while wandering through the Butterfly Rainforest. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Black butterfly on a cluster or orange flowers

The scarlett mormon butterfly enjoying the orange begonia flowers. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Brazilian plume blossom. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Camelia flower with wide pink petals and a cluster of yellow and white stamen at the center of the flower.

The Camellia flowers put on a show this spring. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Selligenella moss on the rocks in the Butterfly Rainforest. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Two grey quail stand on rock next to a selligenella plant.

The little quail are selligenella fans. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Pale blue-green lichen and fuzzy green moss on dark brown bark.

Moss and lichen on the plants in the Butterfly Rainforest. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Small mushroom growing from moss and tree bark

Look closely when exploring the butterfly rainforest, you may spot tiny mushrooms at the base of a tree. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

And of course the butterflies were just as colorful. The blue morpho, tropical blue wave, and the starry night cracker butterflies were all showing off brilliant blue wings. The orange of the Acontius firewing, leopard lacewings, banded orange, and autumn leaf butterflies were easy to spot amid the green of the Rainforest, while the yellow stripes of the Hewitsoni longwing butterfly also caught our photographer’s eye.

Even the koi fish were showing off their colors!

Many thanks to keeper Ingrith for sharing her photos with us.

Blue butterfly with the sun shining through its wings, revealing the markings on the other side of the wings.

The sun shining through the wings of a blue morpho butterfly. Look closely and you can see the eye-spots of the butterfly’s wings. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Butterfly with its wings open showing bright blue wings with white stripes and spots.

The tropical blue wave butterfly with its brilliant blue coloring is a favorite in the Butterfly Rainforest. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Black butterfly with many small blue spots.

With its black wings scattered with brilliant blue spots, the Starry night cracker is a favorite butterfly in the Butterfly Rainforest. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Black butterfly with rows of small pale-yellow spots and stripes.

A female Acontius fire wing butterfly. With this species of butterfly, the male and female butterflies look very different. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Black butterfly with a single wide orange stripe running across the wings

A male Acontius fire wing butterfly. While the female Acontius fire wing butterflies are black with pale yellow stripes and spots, the male butterflies are solid black with a single wide orange stripe. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Butterfly sitting on a green leaf with its wings open. The butterfly wings are orange with

Leopard Lacewing butterfly, Cethosia cyane, has a wingspan of 2.6 to 3.3”. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Orange and black butterfly on a pink flower.

Banded orange butterfly. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Butterfly with an orange, black, and cream stripes.

Banded orange butterfly. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Orange butterfly sitting on a green leaf. The wing tips are black with orange spots.

With their wings open the Autumn leaf butterfly is easy to spot, but with their wings closed the wings are camouflage to look like a leaf. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Hewitsoni longwing butterfly. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Black, white and orange butterfly sitting on a cluster of white flowers

Many butterflies enjoy the begonia flowers, like this rusty-tipped page butterfly. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Brown, white and cream-colored butterfly sitting on a pink and green leaves.

The Clipper butterfly, Parthenos sylvia, has a wingspan of 3-4.2”. This species is originally from Southeast Asia. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Butterfly sitting on a rock with its wings partially open. The wings are white with orange and black markings on the wing tips.

Great orange tip butterfly has a wingspan of 2.5 to 3.5”. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez

Two koi fish, one orange and white one black and white in the shallow stream. The bottom of the stream is filled with small brown and cream colors pebbles. Sunlight is reflecting off the water.

Don’t forget to check out the stream in the butterfly rainforest, you may spot koi fish or turtles. Florida Museum photo by Ingrith Martinez