Butterflies seem to love lantana. Here we see a female eastern tiger swallowtail enjoying a meal. You can tell it is a female because of the blue around the bottom of the lower set of wings. Female tiger swallowtails can also be black. This is the first time we got close enough to notice that the bodies are striped too. Lantana and tiger swallowtails both do exceptionally well in Greensboro. We planted lantana because the flowers turn into dark purple balls which eventually look rather silver. They add great visual interest to the garden and keep humans, AND butterflies, interested in them all summer long. Butterflies have contributed significantly to pollinating our garden this year.
Love your butterfly!
Posted by: Luckaa | Thursday, August 05, 2010 at 05:42 AM
Agree with Luckaa, love your butterfly and the story too. It is as light as butterfly (female) wings :-)
Posted by: Irina | Thursday, August 05, 2010 at 06:47 AM
They are such fascinating creatures.
Posted by: Bill B | Thursday, August 05, 2010 at 07:10 AM
What a beauty!
Posted by: Halcyon | Thursday, August 05, 2010 at 09:28 AM
Very nice.
Posted by: barbara farr | Thursday, August 05, 2010 at 07:34 PM