Fun In The Butterfly House

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

12 May 2007 05:00 PM

During our last trip to Hawaii we took my then 2-year-old daughter to the butterfly exhibit at the local zoo. She's not too fond of bugs, so I wasn't sure how much she would appreciate standing in a cage full of monarchs, longwings and swallowtails.

My older brother (ever the realist) insisted she would be just fine. After all, he reminded me, my daughter once tried to climb into the zoo's monkey cage, so this was her chance to get up close and personal with some winged insects. Turns out he was right. Within minutes of walking into the exhibit my daughter was squealing with delight as hundreds of colorful butterflies fluttered around her head and tickled her arms.

The Butterfly House at our zoo is filled with tropical plants and spectacularly colored butterflies. It has proven to be quite a crowd pleaser--so much so you now have to wait in line to gain entry. It's no wonder more and more zoos and museums nationwide are adding butterfly exhibits to their facilities. In most cases you are charged an extra $2-$3 to walk through the exhibit, but personally I think it is worth the money.

If your local zoo doesn't have a Butterfly House consider traveling to one of these stand-alone exhibits that are open year round:

• The Butterfly Palace in Branson, Missouri.

• The Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservancy.

• Butterfly World in Coconut Creek, Florida has grown into a butterfly breeding center. As many as 10,000 butterflies are on display each day.

• The Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory in Canada is just 10 minutes from Niagara Falls and features more than 2,000 tropical butterflies.

In other parts of the country outdoor butterfly gardens are seasonal. For example, New York City's Bronx Zoo along with zoos in Oklahoma City and St. Paul, Minnesota are among a growing number of zoos with butterfly gardens. In addition, Huntsville Botanical Garden in Alabama just opened a butterfly house and children's garden last year and reported tremendous success. For you families traveling to the Washington, D.C. area this fall, the National Museum of Natural History is building an enclosed butterfly exhibit that will open in November.

A word of warning if you venture into one of these magnificent Butterfly Houses with young children: visitors are not allowed to reach out and touch the insects because it could shorten their life span, which lasts only about three or four weeks. At the Butterfly House we visited we sat on benches and waited for the butterflies to settle on us. Also, zoo employees will warn you to watch where you step, as the butterflies tend to land on the ground.

Related Articles:

Day Trip: Brookfield Zoo

Hawaii's Well Kept Secret

Botanical Gardens--A Wonderful Day Trip... And So Much More

The Bronx Zoo: Butterfly Garden

Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

View Full Profile | More from this Blogger