Bees, Butterflies, and Hummingbirds in the Pollinarium
Butterfly Garden and Pollinarium
The Pollinarium is a part of the Invertebrate Exhibit which is located along Olmsted Walk behind the Reptile Discovery Center. This greenhouse-like annex is a haven for a variety of nectar-loving creatures including butterflies, moths, and hummingbirds. Here you will see these creatures, many of startling beauty, feeding upon the specially selected plants. Note the adaptations that these creatures have developed which make them specialized to feed on nectar, such as the long beaks and tongues and hovering abilities of the hummingbird.
These adaptations allow the birds to move quickly from flower to flower, pausing to reach deep inside to draw out the small amount of nectar available in each one. Among the specimens grown here are a variety ofherbaceous plants such as Blood Flower (Asclepias curassavica), Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa), Passionflower (Passiflora biflora), Star Cluster (Pentas lanceolata), Blue Porter Weed (Stachytarpheta jamaicensis), and Starfish Flower (Stapelia asterias). Shrubs, woody vines, and small trees include Night Jessamine (Cestrum nocturnum), Bleeding Heart Vine (Clerodendrum thomsonae), Jasmine (Jasminum tortuosum), Poet's Jessamine (Jasminum officinale), Peregrina (Jatropha integerrima), Shrub Verbena (Lantana camara), Trailing Lantana (Lantana montevidensis), Coral Plant (Russelia equisetiformis), Mexican Flame Vine (Senecio confusus), and Confederate Jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides).
The Butterfly Garden is located outside the Pollinarium. Grown along this outdoor walk are a number of plants native to the area which are particularly attractive to butterflies and moths.
Among the plants which can be encountered here are Common Yarrow (Achillea millefolium), Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa), Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), New England Aster (Aster novae-angliae), Starwort (Aster novii-belgii), Spectacular Aster (Aster spectabilis), Blue False Indigo (Baptisia australis), Black Cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa), Mist Flower (Eupatorium coelestinum), Thoroughwort (Eupatorium perfoliatum), Bee Balm (Monarda didyma), Horsemint (Monarda fistulosa), Sundrops (Oenothera fruticosa), Wild Sweet William (Phlox divaricata), Perennial Phlox (Phlox paniculata), Orange Coneflower (Rudbeckia fulgida), Seaside Goldenrod (Solidago sempervirens), Foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia), Common Spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana), and Ironweed (Vernonia noveboracensis). Several trees and shrubs are found here also, including Wild Snowball (Ceanothus americanus), Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis), Summer Sweet (Clethra alnifolia), and Wax Myrtle (Myrica cerifera). With this wide variety of flowering species, blooming examples of one or more of these plants may be viewed at any time throughout the growing season.
This garden features a layered design, with taller plants placed in the back and shorter ones towards the front. In some cases certain species with complementary colors of foliage and flowers are planted adjacently for aesthetic reasons, but most are located in clusters or zones of selected specimens designed to appeal to certain species of animals. Different species of Asclepias, which provide nectar for adult Monarch butterflies and food for Monarch larvae, are located in one portion of the garden. The Asters planted in another section attract the Pearl Crescent Butterfly, while stands of Viburnums and Dogwoods have proven irresistible to the Spring Azure Butterfly.
Many wild butterflies have been seen visiting the plants in this garden. Besides the butterfly species mentioned above, sightings have been made of the American Painted Lady Butterfly (Vanessa cardui), the Cabbage White Butterfly (Pieris rapae), the Clouded Sulfur Butterfly (Colia philodice), the Eastern Tailed Blue Butterfly (Everes melinus), the Silver Spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus), the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus), and a host of others. The daytime-flying Hummingbird Clearwing Moth (Hemaris thysbe) and Snowberry Clearwing Moth (Hemaris diffinis) have also been spotted. Who knows what you might encounter on your walk through?
