Butterfly Spring Fest

Three locations in Collier County simultaneously held the Butterfly Spring Fest on March 9th: the North Collier Regional Park, Connors Park and Sugden Regional Park. And was a free event! Collier County Parks and Recreation “highlighted the splendor of spring and the invaluable contributions of butterflies to our ecosystem,” with fun activities for the entire family. 

Collier County has about 80 documented butterflies. With the spring blooms in the garden attracting all types of pollinators, the butterfly garden at Sugden Regional Park was a perfect place to look for butterflies. Though it was a windy morning, which kept the butterflies away, the event organizers had dedicated volunteers with assorted educational butterfly activities for everyone to enjoy. 

New visitors to Sugden Park’s Butterfly Garden were captivated with the variety of butterfly-friendly plants - which were all labeled – like the yellow coreopsis (coreopsis lanceolate), a Florida native and a favorite butterfly nectar plant. They also had clumps of Helianthus Debilis (dune sunflowers), a Florida native ground cover blooming year round.

A very popular table had a newly hatched Giant Swallowtail inside a netted cage. According to Friends of Collier County Butterflies volunteer Bonnie Lervik,  it had hatched the night before and gave everyone a rare view of the Giant Swallowtail’s colorful bottom side!

Here are samples of the Butterfly Discovery Challenge for all ages. You are given a set of questions and you have to look for the answer as you tour the butterfly garden and complete your challenge. Parents had fun taking this activity with the little ones.

Do butterflies bite? Butterflies don’t bite because they can’t. But once they become butterflies, they drink nectar through a straw like mouth part called proboscis. As a caterpillar, some may bite at predators if they feel threatened.

How long does a butterfly live? From egg to butterfly stage is roughly 28-32 days. The average life span is 14-21 days.

How many legs does a butterfly have? All butterflies, like all insects, have six legs. 

Do butterflies sleep? Butterflies do not have eyelids to close, so they never look like they are asleep. But they do have a resting period that takes place at night. You may see them hanging from a leaf or a twig with their wings folded and motionless.

If you have a garden with flowers, chances are, you’ll have butterflies visiting especially in sunny exposed areas, even on short grasses and flowering weeds. And don’t forget to look in shrubs and even trees. 

In 1996, the Florida Legislature designated the zebra heliconian (aka zebra longwing) as the official state butterfly. This butterfly is black with yellow stripes and the top wings are longer and narrower than wings of most butterflies. Their caterpillars enjoy munching on Passion vine leaves.

The event was a tribute to local butterflies, which are not just beautiful creatures but “serve as  flagships for conservation, symbolizing the delicate balance of our environment and “ we aim to foster a deeper appreciation for these magnificent creatures and inspire action towards their preservation,” says Connie Nagele (Butterfly Garden Program Lead) “Through this event, we hope to instill a sense of wonder about butterflies and empower our community to join hands in their conservation.”

Thanks to all the volunteers from the Naples Native Plant Society and the Friends of Collier County Butterflies – a group of people who are dedicated to learning more about butterflies, pollinators and their habitat. The Naples Native Plant Society had butterfly-friendly native plants for sale.

You can also plan to join them for an upcoming butterfly count scheduled for June 22, 2024. They will record the diversity of species, monitor population changes, promote conservation and make suggestions on how to incorporate hosts and nectar plants into your garden. Collectively, they have observed 40 different species and counted a total of 1,854 butterflies from May 2021 – November 2023. They plan to do butterfly counts twice a year, usually in June and one in November. No experience necessary and you get to meet other nature lovers.