Our Winter Wonderland - Part 2: The Blue Pansy

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you will know that I love watching and photographing butterflies.  Botswana has such a wonderful array of butterflies.

In my latest garden stroll, I saw some that I have seen before such as these two,

and one new one below

But today was extra special,

I managed to follow and photograph what I am inclined to say is my favourite butterfly - the "Blue Pansy".  I hardly ever see it and when I do, I haven't had my camera, but today I found out part of the reason why I don't see it so often….

...Because here is how it looks most of the time! - if you can manage to spot it in the two photographs below!

(and yes as you can see from the photo above, there are still little red bugs everywhere!)

How's that for camoflage! and I'm sure you are not seeing anything that will make you think it could be named 'Blue Pansy'

But if you wait long enough - and you really have to be patient with this guy (and he's a really nervous critter and seems more 'flighty' than other butterflies) 

- he starts to open his wings and the most amazing thing is revealed….

keep watching…

He has a 'spot' on each wing and in this photo it looks pink…..but wait and watch….when he flies up onto the flower

Now one is kind of lilac

and now one is lilac and one is going kind of purple

And now the purple-y one is beginning to have a hint of iradescent blue

Now both have a bit of iradescent blue

Now one has changed to totally iradescent and the other purple has darkened

and now the blue is darkening…and you see why he is named the "Blue Pansy"'

he is stunning!

But then….

part way through my photographing he decided to fly up into a tree above me and while he sat there both his spots were a pretty pink

…and when

he flew back down he once more just sat there with his wings closed for ages, not letting me see his hidden beauty, 

until he flew up onto the flowers again!

and see those pretty stripes under part of his wing...

and the process of colour change seemed to start again, even to one spot goint quite dark blue

This is truly an amazing little guy, even with his broken and disfigured wing, he was still magnificent!!

We can never cease to stand in awe of the Creator's designs - there are so many variations just in butterfly wing patterns…..but I think this guy is in a class of his own!