Friday, October 16, 2009

Open! Open! Open!

It's been cloudy, wet, and frequently cool almost every day this month. A few days ago, I found this little butterfly perched on the flower buds of a white mistflower bush. It looks like he is just waiting for the flowers to open.

White mistflower, Ageratina havanensis (possibly Ageratina wrightii), is a butterfly magnet. The weather guessers say we will have a few dry, sunny days before it starts raining again next week. This should be enough time for the flowers to pop open. When that happens, the plant will be covered with butterflies, bees, wasps, flies, and various other insects and reptiles looking for a feast of one kind or another.

Be patient, little guy. It won't be long.