Note to self: arrival of a new butterfly (moth) Adelpha fessonia in Yucatan Mexico

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Today is Jult 27 and these new butterflies showed up in mass this morning.  It was about a month ago that yellow and purples showed up.  I don't know enough about them to know what it is, so I asked in a FB group if this is a Monarch.  It is not.  Monarchs start their migration from central Mexico and go north to the United States as far as North Califonia.  This beautiful fella is actually a moth.  But beautiful nevertheless.

I discovered a month ago, with my rock side walk, if I keep it sprayed with water, it form little pools of water everywhere, and the butterflies and moths come in and gather around it for a drink.  I've also been told this is why they have "stopped over" on their journey here, because I have abundant supplies of water and there is no other spot for 3 km away.    These Adelpha also love to feast on spoiled fruit.  I accidentally left a banana outside that I forgot about and it was completely black and completely covered in the beautiful creatures.

I was sitting in the shade near the banana, and while sitting there 2 of them came and landed on my face and just fluttered for a few minutes until I stood up.  It was a peaceful moment.  People say you need to stop and smell the roses?  I think it's good to stop and let some butterflies crawl on your face a few minutes.   :-)



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