Is it Trying to Tell Me Something?

Tawny Emperor Butterfly

We are working on our Backyard Wildlife Habitat certification.  A fun summer project with the kids and very educational.  Our first step is to document what we already have like nesting areas, native plants, water sources, and trees.  While taking a photo of a bat house that is on the back of our barn this lovely butterfly landed on me.

I got a close-up view! 

When I got back in the house I grabbed our Backyard Wildlife Habitat notebook and looked up the butterfly.  Aha! It is a Tawny Emperor...attracted to rotting fruit and dung.  I'm not sure what this says about me! I WAS in the area where we compost the alpaca manure.

 

It would not fly away. Here it is crawling on my arm.  

I thought I was so special.

There are many links in mythology between butterflies and the human soul. Butterflies also represent love, long life, and marital bliss in other cultures. I think I'll spend time on that thought instead!

I did get a picture of the old bat house.