Hi from my zebra longwing buddy! We’re at Dow Gardens’ Butterflies in Bloom, where I volunteer on Wednesdays during the annual six-week exhibit, tending the new butterflies in the chrysalis cases. These photos were taken March 6, 2024, from behind the cases.

From the front, the two chrysalis cases in the Conservatory look like windows. From the back, as shown here, they look much the same, except we see much more than visitors do of the blue pads we put down and spray with water to keep the humidity in the cases up.

Here’s a butterfly hanging out on a chrysalis to dry. The best-case scenario is that they emerge quickly and fully, grab their chrysalis firmly, and stay rooted while they flap their wings and pump fluid out of their bodies. The fluid is meconium and stains the pads, so we let concerned visitors know it’s not blood and is completely normal.

A malachite

Most butterflies take a couple of hours to dry and be strong enough for release into the flying display. We need them to be able to fly around to the various flowers and feed themselves.

Our largest butterflies, the owls and blue morphos that are the size of your hand, can take half a day to dry. We let their activity level guide us. When they’re practically beating at the glass, it’s definitely time for release.

With visitors pressing up against the glass all day, it’s impossible to keep clean, sorry. I still like the stained glass effect of the butterflies with the sunlight pouring through.