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Butterfly & Moth Photos

Every time we spot a blue morpho butterfly tumbling down the air currents of a tropical canyon like a softball sized sapphire against an emerald green backdrop of rainforest foliage we get almost giddy with delight.

I can’t count the number of times I’ve almost broken my neck scrambling down a stream bed with my camera trying unsuccessfully to get a perfect shot of a morpho. It was amazing seeing an entire cloud of them in the butterfly enclosure at Finca Naturales on the grounds of Si Como No boutique hotel in Manuel Antonio (see video above).

The incredible variety of butterflies and moths in Costa Rica means every time you go outside (or sometimes even inside) you’re likely to see a new one. Don’t forget your camera and if you get a good shot send it to us and we’ll publish it.

Moth in the parking lot of Tapanti National Park entrance station
Moth in the parking lot of Tapanti National Park entrance station
Banded Orange Heliconian Butterfly
Banded Orange Heliconian Butterfly
Black and white butterfly
Black and white butterfly
Moth
Yellow sulfur butterfly on hibiscus flower
Yellow sulfur butterfly on hibiscus flower
Variable Cracker butterfly
Variable Cracker butterfly (Hamadryas feronia). They’re called “crackers” because of the snapping sound they make with their wings when defending territory.
Butterfly up close
Butterfly up close – You said you wanted to see the wildlife up close… This is one of 37 or more species of the Patch butterflys found in CR living up to its name it seems. Chlosyne maybe the narva. Really hard to tell here. In the US we call this family the checkerspots.
Glass wing moth
Glass wing moth
moth and seashells
moth and seashells
Clearwing moth on the breakfast table at Dantica Lodge
Clearwing moth on the breakfast table at Dantica Lodge
Common Banner butterfly
Common Banner butterfly (Epiphile adrasta) near Rincón de la Vieja
Moth Monteverde
Moth Monteverde
Very bizarre moth on driftwood
Very bizarre moth on driftwood
Wasp and butterfly
Warning! This image may be disturbing to lepidopterists. The butterfly didn’t stand a chance once the wasp targeted it.
Owl butterfly (Caligo memnon)
Owl butterfly (Caligo memnon)
Owl butterfly (Caligo memnon) eggs
Owl butterfly (Caligo memnon) eggs
Owl butterfly (Caligo memnon)
Owl butterfly (Caligo memnon)
Doris Longwing, Doris Butterfly (Heliconius doris) caterpillar
Doris Longwing, Doris Butterfly (Heliconius doris) caterpillar
Morpho egg
Morpho egg
Heliconius doris
Doris Longwing, Doris Butterfly (Heliconius doris)
Black and red and white on the outside - emerald green on the inside
Black and red and white on the outside – emerald green on the inside
Black and red and white on the outside - emerald green on the inside
Black and red and white on the outside – emerald green on the inside
Butterfly Gandoca Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge
Butterfly Gandoca Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge
Doris Longwing, Doris Butterfly (Heliconius doris)
Doris Longwing
Fuzzy Caterpillar
Fuzzy Caterpillar
Owl butterfly (Caligo memnon) pupae
Owl butterfly (Caligo memnon) pupae
Malachite butterfly
A Malachite butterfly Siproeta stelenes named after the green rock. If you look thru its wings its like looking through stained glass. Malachites are often confused with Philaethria dido. They have similar coloration, but their wing shapes are different (little sword tail) . A book by Carrol Henderson “Butterflies, Moths … of Costa Rica made this common mistake.
light trap at Rancho Naturalista
The light trap at Rancho Naturalista attracts hundreds of different types of moths, butterflies and other insects each night.
White spotted glass-wing butterfly (Greta annette or Greta nero) along Sendero la Catarata in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park
White spotted glass-wing butterfly (Greta annette or Greta nero) along Sendero la Catarata in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park
Red black and white butterfly
Caterpillars
Caterpillars
Caterpillar
Orange white and black butterfly that looks a little like a monarch
Orange white and black butterfly that looks a little like a monarch
Malachite butterfly
Malachite butterfly
Malachite butterfly
Malachite butterfly
Tattered butterfly
Tattered butterfly along the nature trail Guyabo Ruins National Monument
light trap for moths
The light trap at Rancho Naturalista attracts hundreds of different types of moths, butterflies and other insects each night.
The light trap at Rancho Naturalista attracts hundreds of different types of moths, butterflies and other insects each night.
Light trap moth
The light trap at Rancho Naturalista attracts hundreds of different types of moths, butterflies and other insects each night.
Light trap moths
The light trap at Rancho Naturalista attracts hundreds of different types of moths, butterflies and other insects each night.
Light trap moth
The light trap at Rancho Naturalista attracts hundreds of different types of moths, butterflies and other insects each night.
Light trap moth
The light trap at Rancho Naturalista attracts hundreds of different types of moths, butterflies and other insects each night.
Light trap moth
The light trap at Rancho Naturalista attracts hundreds of different types of moths, butterflies and other insects each night.
Light trap moth
The light trap at Rancho Naturalista attracts hundreds of different types of moths, butterflies and other insects each night.
Light trap moth
The light trap at Rancho Naturalista attracts hundreds of different types of moths, butterflies and other insects each night.
Light trap moth
Black butterfly
Black butterfly
White and tan butterfly
White and tan butterfly
Orange black and white butterfly
Doris Longwing, Doris Butterfly (Heliconius doris)
Doris Longwing
Butterfly Gandoca Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge
Butterfly – Gandoca Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge
Pupae
Pupae being raised to fill a butterfly garden
Caterpillar
Camouflaged butterfly
Camouflaged butterfly
Pieridae family
Along the road to Currabande on the slopes of Rincon de la Vieja – Pavonia cancellata from the family Malvaceae and Alfalfa Butterfly? from the Pieridae family
Moth
tattered butterfly
butterfly
butterfly
Moth hanging on tight
Moth hanging on tight to a rock so it doesn’t get blown away by the winds that nearly constantly whip around Monteverde
butterfly garden Hacienda Barú
butterfly garden Hacienda Barú
Glasswing
Glasswing
Very bizarre moth on driftwood
Very bizarre moth on driftwood

Ray & Sue

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Photos
  • Tortuguero Beach – National Park & Sea Turtles Nesting
  • Tortuguero Village & Canals Photos
  • Guayabo National Monument
  • San Gerardo de Dota National Park
  • Karen Mogensen Nature Reserve
  • Lower Savegre & Rafiki
  • Savegre National Park
  • Pacuare River Rafting Overnight
  • Portalón Estero Rey National Wildlife Refuge
  • Hacienda Barú National Wildlife Refuge Photos
  • Rainmaker Biological Reserve Photos
  • Hills of Portalón Wildlife Refuge
  • Funny, Quirky, Weird – Costa Rica Humor
  • Bahía Junquillal National Wildlife Refuge Photos
  • Playa Hermosa-Punta Mala National Wildlife Refuge Photos
  • La Cangreja National Park Photos
  • Pacuare Gilligan’s Island
  • Rincón de la Vieja – Hacienda Guachipelín Photos
  • Quirky, Weird, Funny – Costa Rica Humor
  • Lankester Botanical Gardens Photos



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