A Few of FR's Finest...Every Day...03-15-06....Butterflies !! The "Pretty" Bugs!

DollyCali | March 15, 2006 | DollyCali

[DollyCali]

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in need; and congratulate those deserving. We strive to keep our threads entertaining, fun, and pleasing to look at, and often have guest writers contribute an essay, or a profile of another FReeper.

On Mondays please visit us to see photos of A FEW OF FR'S VETERANS AND ACTIVE MILITARY

If you have a suggestion, or an idea, or if there's a FReeper you would like to see featured, please drop one of us a note in FR mail.

We're having fun and hope you are!
~ Billie, dutchess, DollyCali GodblessUSA ~

Butterfly Facts

Did you know?

,,,that butterflies taste with their feet?

... that butterflies don't have noses? They smell with their antennae!

. . . that butterfly wings are covered with tiny scales? Different colored scales make up the pretty patterns we see.

... that butterflies are cold-blooded? The dark colors on their wings help them absorb the heat from the sun.

... that some butterflies wear camouflage? The wings of many butterflies have colors and patterns that blend in with their natural surroundings to protect them from predators.

... that butterflies can see ultraviolet light? Some scales on butterfly wings reflect light that is invisible to humans. Butterflies use these ultraviolet patterns to recognize each other.

... that a butterfly's mouth is like a drinking straw? That's because butterflies only eat liquid foods, like nectar from flowers or fruit. The mouth, called a proboscis, stays rolled up until it's time to eat.

... that a butterfly wasn't always a butterfly? Every butterfly starts as a tiny egg that hatches into a caterpillar)larvae). The caterpillar grows and grows until it's time to build a hardened shell around its body, called a chrysalis. While the caterpillar sleeps inside the (pupae) chrysalis, its body changes and grows new parts. When it comes out, it has become a butterfly, quite a different creature than a caterpillar!

Two weeks after hatching, the Monarch butterfly is 3,000 times its original birth weight. ..

The color in a butterfly's wings does not come from pigment. The color is produced prism-like by light reflected by their transparent wing scales..

The world’s smallest butterfly is the Pygmy Blue.  Its wingspan ranges between three eighths to half an inch in length. The largest butterfly in the world is the Giant Birdwing from the Solomon Islands. The female can have a wing span of over 12 inches..

Butterflies have an honed sense of smell and can detect nectar from miles away.  When they sense the blossoming of a plant they thrive on, they will travel for hours to reach it..

Butterflies cannot fly if their body temperature is less than 86 degrees

To A Butterfly (second) by William Wordsworth

'VE watched you now a full half-hour;
Self-poised upon that yellow flower
And, little Butterfly! indeed
I know not if you sleep or feed.
How motionless!not frozen seas
More motionless! and then
What joy awaits you, when the breeze
Hath found you out among the trees,
And calls you forth again!

This plot of orchard-ground is ours;
My trees they are, my Sister's flowers;
Here rest your wings when they are weary;
Here lodge as in a sanctuary!
Come often to us, fear no wrong;
Sit near us on the bough!
We'll talk of sunshine and of song,
And summer days, when we were young;
Sweet childish days, that were as long
As twenty days are now.

Written in the orchard, Town-end, Grasmere.

From Cocoon Forth a Butterfly

FROM cocoon forth a butterfly
As lady from her door
Emerged—a summer afternoon—
Repairing everywhere,

Without design, that I could trace,
Except to stray abroad
On miscellaneous enterprise
The clovers understood.

Her pretty parasol was seen
Contracting in a field
Where men made hay, then struggling hard
With an opposing cloud,

Where parties, phantom as herself,
To Nowhere seemed to go
In purposeless circumference,
As ’t were a tropic show.

And notwithstanding bee that worked,
And flower that zealous blew,
This audience of idleness
Disdained they, from the sky,

Till sundown crept, a steady tide,
And men that made the hay,
And afternoon, and butterfly,
Extinguished in its sea.

Emily Dickinson (1830–86). Complete Poems. 1924

Another Song of a Fool

THIS great purple butterfly,
In the prison of my hands,
Has a learning in his eye
Not a poor fool understands.

Once he lived a schoolmaster
With a stark, denying look,
A string of scholars went in fear
Of his great birch and his great book.

Like the clangour of a bell,
Sweet and harsh, harsh and sweet,
That is how he learnt so well
To take the roses for his meat.

W.B. Yeats (1865–1939). The Wild Swans at Coole. 1919.

Butterfly Screen Saver

Kids Butterfly Site

The Butterfly Site

Greta oto is one of a number of similar transparent winged butterflies. It comes from central America, and is found from Mexico to Panama. It is quite common in its zone, but it not easy to find because of its transparent wings, which is a natural camouflage mechanism.

Greta oto is a brush-footed butterfly, and is a member of the clearwing clade; its wings are transparent. Its most common English name is glasswing, and its Spanish name is espejitos, which means "little mirrors." Indeed, the tissue between the veins of its wings looks like glass. It is one of the more abundant clearwing species in its home range. The opaque borders of its wings are dark brown sometimes tinted with red or orange, and its body is dark in color. Its wingspan is between 5.5 and 6 cm.

Adults inhabit the rainforest understory and feed on the nectar of a variety of tropical flowers. G. oto prefers to lay its eggs on plants of the tropical nightshade genus Cestrum. The silvery-gray caterpillars feed on these toxic plants and store the alkaloids in their tissues, making them distasteful to predators such as birds. They retain their toxicity in adulthood. The same alkaloids that make them poisonous also are converted into pheromones by the males, which use them to attract females..

G. oto adults also exhibit a number of interesting behaviors, such as long migrations and lekking among males..

Greta oto Scientific classification

Domain:--- Eukaryota
Kingdom: ---Animalia
Phylum:--- Arthropoda
Class---: Insecta
Order:---Lepidoptera
Suborder: ---Ditrysia
Division:--- Rhopalocera
Superfamily: ---Papilionoidea
Family: ----Nymphalidae
Subfamily: ---Ithomiinae
Genus: ---Greta
Species:--- G. oto

12-28-05 ~ Hall of Fame #14

THIS WEEK'S THREADS 03-13-06 Military Monday 03-14-06....A Finest Pet Day ~ The Doggie Dictionary

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' Every Thursday at the Finest The guy's good, folks!

[DollyCali]

[DollyCali]

<

Our Dear Father, creator and Lord of great love - we ask that you keep the men and women of our military in Your protective care. May the families be immersed with peace and comfort as they proudly know their loved ones are serving for the things that are dear to all of us. AMEN

<

Below are names of some of our FReepers' loved ones who are serving our country. If you have someone you would like to add, please address a post to Billie; Mama_Bear; Dutchess; The Mayor; GodBlessUSA; DollyCali, and we will add their name to this list. As we pray for them, we pray also for all our nation’s leaders, and military personnel, and their families and friends. May God hold them close to His heart.

severa............husband, brother Maigrey............................cousin mystery-ak.............son, husband Gogrammy...................grandson Inspectorette.......................son Blessed American..........nephew Slip18..........................nephew Diver Dave.......niece, nephew ConspiracyGuy........2 nephews Pippin............niece's husband sneakers..............................son weldgophardline.....brotherinlaw jamaly.................brotherinlaw Future Snake Eater..........cousin WaterDragon.............grandson WaterDragon...........son-in-law BeforeISleep...................son kimmie7......................brother Armymarinemom............3 sons american_ranger.............son LadyX.........................grandson fawn796.......................nephew ValerieUSA....................2 sons Lakeside........................2 sons LakeLady......................nephew Spruce.........................daughter Leofl......................................son chena......................................son Hope and Glory..................son Philman_36..............2 nephews bjcintennessee.......son, niece TheMayor...............friends'son homeschoolmama...........nephew ariamne...................2 cousins mhking.........................cousin visualops..........................cousin auboy.............................cousin Ladysmith..nephew, friend's son tina07......soninlaw & his friend MontanaCowgirlCop.......brother Misty4jc........................husband Colorado Slim................nephew Tapatio....................2 nephews ProudAFDad............................son Alouette................................son Katydidnt..............................son Q6-God...................twin brother Q6-God.....................active duty Warrior Nurse...........active duty SK1 Thurman...........active duty David Osborne.........active duty fc2tomschermuly......active duty bkwells....................active duty LongCut....................active duty cjk...........................active duty Trish.........................active duty ODC-GIRL.................active duty AF_Blue...................active duty Notwithstanding.......active duty thumperusn..............active duty Veloxherc.................active duty Don Simmons...........active duty wingnutx...................active duty Old Sarge.................active duty CGblue.....................active duty bigghurtt...................active duty frankiep....................active duty veeceeque................active duty JRios1968...............active duty NoLongerFreeState....active duty wolf creek………….daughter JesseJane ............ cousin SoldiersPrayingMom...............son WakeUpandVote...........brother kimmykay ……….son mrs tiggywinkle............cousin cyber ant……...nephew Earthdweller..…..nephew Nadine………………… .nephewweldgophardline…….son jrushing...…...son

Chairman_December_19th_Society ......brother-in-law scuba chick……husband OhioWfan................................son gator girl........................husband ladtx..................................2 MozartLover...........son, nephew ak_daddoo........................nephew Dubya............................nephew LBGA (RIP)..........................son katykelly..............................son cookcounty.............................son SpookBrat........................nephew SpookBrat........................cousin Doug from Upland............soninlaw Himyar....................................son boxerblues........................2 sons the piper....................................son sheeza................................husband kemathen7.........................husband Tiffee4Bob..........................boyfriend deadhead.............................cousin JimRobinson...............2 nephews TexKat.......................son, step-son StarCMC.............................brother Consort........................2 daughters Consort.......................son-in-law Darheel...............................niece Repubmom………….son Donaeus...........................nephew dixie sass........................nephew BeAllYouCanBe........................son Repubmommy........................brother AgThorn................................2 sons kneezles.................................son RoseinRoseBear.....cousin's hubby Atomic Conspiracy......half-brother Atomic Conspiracy...........nephew Atomic Conspiracy..............niece Sunflowergal....................grandson mrstank..............................husband MrsMike31........................husband Rose0508.….son spotbust1............................husband campfollower............................fiance LUV W........................................son painter...................................nephew Bykrbayb........................................son SilentServiceCPOWife........husband Walkenfree................2 grandsons Walkenfree.................. 3 nephews Walkenfree..................granddaughter Zechariah_8_13.......brother-in-law Zechariah_8_13.......................cousin DirtyHarryY2K......................daughter DirtyHarryY2K................son-in-law nelibeli...................................nephew Skimask.....................................son El Gato...............................nephew Palladin...............................grandson MississippyMuddy...................sister MississippyMuddy.....2 nephews Kramster...............................stepson gonzo.........................friend's son Socratic.............................nephew LoneRedRanger......brother-in-law Jemian...................................son freema....................nephew, son Azbushgal..............................son PreviouslyA-Lurker...........brother kimmykay.................................son right2parent..............................son NavySEAL F-16........................son Ike............................................son Skyraider.......... Son CMS............. active duty. Jen's Mom.....................daughter Meg33...........................grandson 911angelady.....................2 Sons JFC……..NephewMicah U S Army EOD.......daughter ninergold3.……..nephew

[DollyCali]

[Chanticleer]

God bless our troops!

[DollyCali]

oh my.. what a darling picture! Snagged of course! Thank you!

[Chanticleer]

Thanks! :-)

My daughter has been raising monarchs for two years now -- she has her own butterfly garden. She loves butterflies.

[DollyCali]

Do you have any pictures of her with them? Have her stop by later.. this is for her!!!! I have a lot of milkweed in my "wild flower" area (know by neighbors as weed patch)

[MEG33]

I will be along later with monarch pictures and migration information..I love them too!

[MEG33]

Dolly ..Your thread was well worth waiting for..It is gorgeous..The glass wings are just amazing!

I lived near a monarch migration site in California and will post more pictures.

[GodBlessUSA]

Hi Dolly,
How are you? Beautiful thread. Who doesn't love butterflies.:) Those are interesting facts about them.

Butterfly in my garden last year. :)

[alwaysconservative]

Thanks for the ping, Dolly. You've created a beautiful thread.

FReepmail soon.

[DollyCali]

great photo.. I love macros! what camera did you use for that one?

I have a LOT of personal butterfly pix.. but first finding them, working them up & then server transfer..all time!

Usually on most summer bike rides/hikes we come across gorgeous flowers to shoot.. and where there are flowers are insects and lovely butterflies..

thanks for pix & I love the dog tag!!!

[Chanticleer]

I definitely will have her come by to see! I need to take some new photos, but here's one of her presenting to a local garden club.

One of her favorite poems:

The Caterpillar
Christina Rosetti

Brown and furry
caterpillar in a hurry
take your walk to the shady leaf or stalk

May no toad spy you
May the little birds pass by you
Spin and die
to live again a butterfly.

[GodBlessUSA]

Hi Dolly, I have an HP 950. I love Butterflies and really enjoy your gorgeous thread. I have a few more pictures on disks. I have to see if I can find a couple of shots. Since I put in our garden I'm amazed by the beautiful butterflies who come to visit. I've never seen them before. :) There's a butterfly that is yellow with a light blue. I'd love to post later and see if I can get an id.

(not a great shot but I'll share anyway. :) This butterfly was taking a rest on our grill cover.

[DollyCali]

Thanks for posting her picture. How great she has this interest so young & perhaps will follow it through with a career when she grows up!

I like Christina Rosetti also..cute poem - thanks

[NicknamedBob]

Butterfly

What’s in those flowers that you sip,
That makes you seem so tipsy?
We can’t tell if you’re coming from,
Albany or Poughkeepsie,

Or even if you’re going to,
One place or the other.
The way you travel seems to be,
You’re looking for your mother!

Just as a toddler wanders round,
With no fixed course in sight,
The butterfly flits both here and yon,
In most erratic flight.

It seems so inefficient,
Why can’t you just hold still?
And then you stop, and fold your wings,
Upon a daffodil.

You daintily step forward,
“I haven’t touched a drop!”
And just as sober as a Judge,
You spread your wings and FLOP!

And Flip, and Flap, and bounce.
A goonie in reverse.
How can you be so comical?
I know you don’t rehearse.

And yet you get where you must go,
God knows how you can do it.
Perhaps the use of folded hands,
And faith just leads you to it.

By NicknamedBob . . . . March 30, 2004
© 2004

[DollyCali]

my "good" HP hit the dust last year.. it did wonderful macros.

I am now using primarily a Fuji film that was a gift and it does great work also. I still don't know how to use all the bells & whistles. It has several macro settings.

I am hoping to have time later to search out some pix also.

My system leaves a lot to be desired. Every "shoot" of pix is in chronological order & with date a short description. a typical file would be:

031406 MetroParkHike4dogsJP

location, activity, other participants.

NOW & then I might give another key word (trains, butterflies) etc. But it is the exception. So I have a set of pix almost ever day & sometimes more than one.. if I do several things. Each set of pictures has LARGE numbers of pix. So finding things is not as easy as it should /could be.

[DollyCali]

thank you Bob. Your contributions are always welcomed & great. If I get a few minutes later, I want to put that in table w/pix..

[freema]

I STILL haven't learned to do pics : (

http://hometown.aol.com/sylviam4000/Butterfly

Look very carefully at this one!!
http://www.hellasmultimedia.com/webimages/patriotic/images/Butterfl.jpg

Martina McBride - She's a Butterfly

She remembers when she first got her wings
And how she opened up that day
she learned to sing
Then the colors came, erased the
black and white
And her whole world changed
when she realized

[Chorus:]
She's a butterfly, pretty as the crimson sky
Nothing's ever gonna bring her down
And everywhere she goes
Everybody knows she's so glad to be alive
She's a butterfly

Like the purest light in a darkened world
So much hope inside such a lovely girl
You should see her fly, it's almost magical
It makes you wanna cry, she's so beautiful

[Chorus]

God bless the butterfly,
give her the strength to fly
Never let her wings touch the ground
God bless the butterfly,
give her strength to fly
Never let her wings touch the ground

[Chorus]

God bless the butterfly,
give her the strength to fly
Never let her wings touch the ground
God bless the butterfly,
give her the strenght to fly
Never let her wings touch the ground

[DollyCali]

Thanks for stopping by.. I have been thinking about you!

{{{ always }}}