Delightful Orange

Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) is in bloom right now on my mountain, creating bright orange patches scattered here and there. It’s a flower that attracts bees, wasps, and butterflies. This bunch of orange attracted a Zebra Swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus) creating a scrumptious color combination of black, white, and orange.

Butterfly Weed has a wider native range than I would have expected, including eastern and southwestern North America. It is a larval food plant of Queen and Monarch butterflies.

This is one of so many native plants to enjoy!

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Brenda Clements Jones

Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.

2 thoughts on “Delightful Orange”

    1. Oh Diane! Thank you so very much! Two of my favorite things – Butterfly Weed and Zebra Swallowtail! Glad you like the picture!

      So very glad that you read my posts! And wish you were a next door neighbor!
      Bren

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