Butterflies perch on nectar flowers at Woodland Park Zoo (Photo by Ryan Harris)
If a day surrounded by colorful butterflies sounds like a good time, you might want to head over to Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo.
Molbak’s Butterfly Garden at the Zoo has been closed for a couple of years because of the pandemic, but it is ready to reopen Friday with more than a dozen species.
Erin Sullivan, the co-curator, says they get them from farms in Florida and Alabama while they’re still asleep in their chrysalis. “We started receiving pupa that we put into our eclosion box about three weeks ago,” Sullivan says, “So they’ve been eclosing, and then we’ve been putting them into the exhibit, and they’ve been flying about.
If you go, be sure to watch your step, because sometimes these butterflies will rest right on the ground, and make sure to have your selfie camera ready because they’re also liable to land on your shoulder. Just make sure you check yourself before you go so you don’t take any butterfly hitchhikers with you!
You can see Ryan Harris’ complete interview with Erin Sullivan and learn all about butterflies in the YouTube video below.
