Loopy lepidoptera

Loopy lepidoptera (January 2002)

Our last day in Copan began with a trip to the Enchanted Wings butterfly house. The house was operated by the owners of a butterfly farm located in La Ceiba, a not so nearby city.

We arrived sufficiently early that the butterflies were just waking up.

Some were still in the middle of breakfast.

Others seemed to be regurgitating their breakfast, which we speculated might be the custom among butterflies, so we tried not to seem shocked and offended.

Some hung out in pairs.

Others in triplets.

And some in whole bunches.

It would have been nice if I had made a note of what kind of butterflies I was seeing so that I could report them here, but I was having so much fun taking pictures that I couldn't be bothered.

This one has racing stripes.

This one, a fine set of antennae.

This blurry one looks like an owl when oriented properly.

Here we have a solid color model.

And one in the early stages of production.

There was even an altercation that went on for a good five or ten minutes. We took it to be a dispute rather than some sort of complicated mating ritual as it didn't result in anything that looked like butterfly sex.

Of course, if you have butterflies, you have to have flowers and those they had in abundance.

Delicate orchids.

Perky little pink ones.

Some in vibrant orange.

Radiant red.

Even some with leopard spots.

And a burbling waterfall sat in the corner providing a soothing soundtrack for the whole affair.

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