Thinking of bugs, butterflies, flip-phones and family...

I guess my Random and Willy-nilly link ups are out of business for the time being.  I was sorry to hear that, but I intend to be random anyhow.  So here you are.

On Monday at Magic Wings, we got to check out this great looking bug.  It’s a Jungle Nymph or Heteropteryx dilatata.  The first thought that popped into my head when I saw it was that wouldn’t it be great if people came in that color?  This is a female Jungle Nymph.  The male is dull brown and much smaller.

Also at Magic Wings, it was mating season for the Cairns Birdwing or Ornithoptera euphorion Butterfly.  We were told that they can go at it for two hours.  More power to them!  In this case, it’s the male who is the more colorful.  He's the one hanging upside down.

Get a room, you two!

 And here’s another Cairns Birdwing whose broken wing has been grafted with another so that it can fly easier and longer.  That’s pretty cool.  I just hope it didn't hurt.

I’ve been noticing on TV shows I watch that a lot of the characters carry flip-phones.  It has been years since I’ve had a flip-phone and it seems to me that most people in real life, at least in our circles, carry iPhones or large screen Droids, which is what I have.  I can’t remember the last time I saw a flip-phone besides the one my daughter Carrie carries.  She’s not a Luddite exactly, but she doesn’t really care that much about the latest technology.

  Anyhow, I’ve been thinking about why they use flip-phones in TV shows, because even the richest TV characters use flip-phones and rarely the latest iPhone model.  I think I have the answer.  I think that they use flip-phones on TV shows for the dramatic effect.  Snapping them shut is sort of the current version of slamming down the receiver like in the days of yore.

  You just can’t do that with an iPhone.

Mr. Birdwing is flipped shut.

Today is National Siblings Day.  I have three sisters and three brothers so I feel justified in celebrating.  I believe this picture was taken in 1976 or so and was a gift for my mother.  While there are hundreds of photos of us individually and in small groups, there aren’t that many photos around with the seven of us together.  It’s just too hard to get us all in one place.  Here we are:

I'm the one in the back row, third from the left in the brown turtleneck.  You may have noticed that there's an extra person in this photo.  That little blond kid in the front is my nephew Jim.  I think he was the only offspring around at the time, but there have been plenty more since.

Have a great weekend, y'all!

Who are you?

It’s hard to fathom how many different kinds of butterflies and moths there are in the world until you attempt to identify one.  Can you believe I just spent about forty-five minutes trying to give this guy a name?

The Postman is feeling a little randy.

As it turns out, I’m still not sure if it is a Piano Key Butterfly or a Postman Butterfly.  But, I guess it really doesn’t matter for my purposes, which is just to show off the photos I took when I went to Magic Wings with my daughter Carrie last week.  In fact, I came across a site on the Interweb that says that the Piano Key and the Postman are one and the same.  So I will go along with that bit of wisdom.  It is the Heliconius Melpomene.  Yes, it does makes me feel smart to spout the Latin name even though I managed to wriggle my  way out of taking Latin 2 in high school.

This beauty is the Cairns Birdwing (or Ornithoptera euphorion) and is a native of Australia.

And here is the Euploea core aka the Common Crow butterfly.  He is common in south Asia.  This particular Common Crow was having a hard time settling down.  I just love those spots.

This is the aptly named Zebra Longwing or Heliconius charithonia.  He is found in South and Central America and as far north as Texas and Florida.

This Malabar Tree Nymph (Idea malabarica) was interested in Carrie’s camera.  This species is normally found in India.  I think this is one of the jauntiest butterflies going so I call it the Prom Dress Butterfly.

But, here’s my particular favorite because I love blue.  It’s known as Peleides Blue Morpho, Common Morpho, or The Emperor (Morpho peleides).  This butterfly is found in Mexico, Central America and northern South America.  Can you imagine stepping out your front door and finding these flying around?  That would be sweet.

We had a terrific time at Magic Wings.  I am grateful to have a place to go to see these magnificent creatures in the flesh.  But both Carrie and I decided that we won’t be going back until it gets cold out again.  I guess butterflies like the kind of weather that makes me feel like a wet rag.  That’s not so great when it’s 70 or 80 degrees out F. but does feel nice when it’s 10 degrees F. out.

The butterflies seemed particularly active when we were there.  Could it be mating season?