Dec. 7, 2016

Desert Botanical Garden Expands Butterfly Exhibit

Tina Marie Tentori, Veronica Brana and Tammy McLeod

The Desert Botanical Garden broke ground on a new, expanded butterfly exhibit Nov. 16. The new exhibit will open in March 2017 and will be located on the Harriet K. Maxwell Desert Wildflower Loop Trail. It will feature hundreds of live butterflies as well as a caterpillar nursery and emergence chamber. The Garden’s newest exhibit will provide visitors an opportunity for up-close interaction with butterflies while learning about their role as pollinators, characteristics of the butterfly in different life cycles and conservation efforts to protect.

“The Garden’s first butterfly pavilion opened in 2002,” says Ken Schutz, the Dr. William Huizingh Executive Director. “It was intended as a five-year pilot project to see if our visitors would enjoy butterflies. After just a few weeks, we knew the answer to that question was a resounding ‘yes,’ and the first butterfly pavilion went on to operate for more than 12 years.

“When it was time to retire that exhibit, we knew that we wanted to replace it with a permanent facility that was even more special – one that incorporated all phases of a butterfly’s life cycle and one that was architecturally consistent with the rest of the Garden’s unique structures.”

The new location has views of Papago Butte and the white screening that wraps the structure is virtually invisible, creating the sense of being outdoors and one with nature.

Construction of the new exhibit is made possible by donors who have made gifts to The Saguaro Initiative campaign. Leading the way in support of the new Butterfly Pavilion is the APS Foundation whose financial donation allows for the construction of the APS Foundation Butterfly Landing. Located just outside the Butterfly Pavilion adjacent to a Monarch butterfly garden display, the APS Foundation Butterfly Landing will provide a dedicated space for school groups, children and families to gather and participate in education programs.

Additional supporters of the new Butterfly Exhibit include Diane Abe and Linda Heppe in memory of Mary and Bing Heppe, J.W. Kieckhefer Foundation and Margaret T. Morris Foundation. The seasonal pavilion will preview to Garden Members on Feb. 27 –March 3, 2017, and opens to all Garden visitors on March 4, 2017. The Butterfly Pavilion will be open daily through Mother’s Day May 14, 2017. from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

HAUTE EVENT PHOTOGRAPHY