The Annual Butterfly Exhibit at Tucson Botanical Gardens

Certainly, there are plants at the Botanical Gardens.

Some make you smile, like these cacti Scarlett named Llamas

I see snails with their necks elongated.

We laughed at both descriptions.

This was all on the way to the tropical environs and big bigger biggest leaves in the desert in The Butterfly Experience.

These LBT's (Little Brown Things) were everywhere, fully exposed and camouflaged.

One circled me, but decided not to land.

I was kinda sorta glad about that.

You are warned to avoid touching the butterflies if they land on you.  

You are also warned to avoid stepping on them.

Their life-cycle spans 2 to 3 weeks; no need to shorten it by human intervention.

We stood for a while, watching the proboscis probe as the antennae and wings provided balance.

A friend came to visit, skirting my elbow and sharing the nectar as his (her?) wings fluttered.

They didn't seem to notice us, which was vaguely insulting.

These orchids were mesmerizing, a burst of pink amidst the green and the humidity.

Up close and personal to an orchid tendril, I found this multi-eyed beauty, soaking up the goodies.

There was another on a sturdier leaf, resting, perhaps, after sucking nectar. 

This is the inside, the view from above when the little beastie is flying.  

It would blend right into the sky and the clouds and the dark ground below, wouldn't it?  

We seem to be making this an annual adventure, Scarlett and I.... although it might become a monthly visit; they receive a new shipment of chrysalises every three weeks or so.  I'm kinda sorta curious about the next set of visitors.