Butterfly Census

Ever wonder how many butterflies made their home in the Tropical Butterfly House last year? Or how many pupae the Life Sciences Department placed in the emerging window? Can you guess how many different butterfly species we received in 2009?

Every year Life Sciences Manager Sarah Moore is required to provide the USDA with a document summarizing our data on pupae shipments. This information is carefully gathered by the staff each week as pupae are carefully inspected before placing them in the Emerging Window.


The 2009 census highlights are listed below:

Shipments received – 72
Different species received – 132
Pupae received – 24,578
Healthy butterflies released – 20,537
Parasitized pupae – 32
Percentage good emergence – 84%

Sarah credits her staff for the outstanding emergence statistics. “Eighty-four percent of pupae emerged as healthy butterflies, which is impressive considering that some shipments were delayed or arrived with problems. Staff really maximized the chances for every pupa to succeed. Their meticulous record keeping allows me to turn in data that I can be very confident is correct and thorough.”

So - Guess which species of butterfly is the most abundant in the Tropical Butterfly House? Frequent guests will easily recognize our beloved mascot, the Blue Morpho (Morpho peleides). We received 2,095 in 2009!