We visited a butterfly sanctuary which is located approximately 2 kilometers from our hotel. The volcano is still visible from the sanctuary. At the sanctuary, they raise butterflies in a laboratory so that they can help re-grow parts of the rainforest that are damaged. This conservatory serves as a laboratory where you can observe butterflies from different habitats around Costa Rica. There are four natural habitats - Ground Forest, Mid-level forest, Canopy, and grasslands. When their wings are dry, the butterflies are released into their natural habitats depending on where they are found in the rainforest. Some of the butterflies that we saw included: glass-winged, owl, monarch, blue-spotted, etc. We also were able to observe a "frog house" where some of the frogs found in the rainforest were being kept. These included poisonous dart frogs and tree frogs including many of their sub-species. Overall the experience was amazing and so calming to experience how these butterflies live in their natural habitats. Many of us got to be very close and even hold the butterflies. It was a once in a lifetime experience to see so many different types of butterflies in one place.
Felicia Yothers
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