Have you ever walked through a tropical jungle amongst thousands of fluttering butterflies?
Instead of heading to the tropics, did you know you can do this at the Butterfly Gardens in Victoria on Vancouver Island? With Vancouver being a popular stopover in Canada, it’s definitely worth tacking on an extra day to enjoy everything Victoria has to offer.
Now, there’s a lot of different meanings surrounding the symbolism of a butterfly, but my favourite is – “they are about finding joy in life and lightness of being.”
So, when a Postman Butterfly landed on my shoulder in the Gardens I did begin to wonder which of my rellies or friends had decided to pop down and say hello!
The Postman Butterfly
Our visit to these enchanting gardens was purely by chance when a friend had asked if we were going to call in there while visiting Vancouver. We’d definitely planned to get the ferry over to Victoria and see the world famous Butchart Gardens but hadn’t heard about the butterfly experience that was just a bus stop away.
Lesson learnt…talk to friends more often!
Table of Contents
Butterflies by the Thousand
Can you imagine walking through an area the size of three basketball courts with 3,000 butterflies fluttering around you, all going on their daily chores of what they do best – enjoying nectar and pollinating.
Surprises were at every corner, because there weren’t only butterflies to enjoy, there were tortoises, iguanas, flamingos, ducks and tropical birds flying around – BIG ones!
After all the entrance sign had said – “your jungle adventure is waiting”.
We’d decided to spoil ourselves with a couple of nights at the Fairmont Empress Hotel in Victoria. Getting to the Butterfly Gardens (and onto Butchart Gardens) meant we just needed to catch a local bus (number 75) outside the hotel.
For a more extensive tour of Victoria, Grayline Sightseeing has a great range of Hop On Hop Off and other bus tours. And apparently flying, at least one way, from Vancouver is really worth the extra dollars.
Download the App
We didn’t actually read about downloading the app before entering the butterfly enclosure (typical of us) but those we spoke to who did, said it was a great reference tool when walking around the gardens. There’s such a huge variety of tropical flowers, insects, bugs and carnivorous plants (eeek!) the app makes it much easier to make your way around with no doubling up on pathways.
There are up to 70 different butterfly species of but we didn’t see them all. We were there on a Monday and they were probably resting after putting on a flying show for weekend tourists!
Those we saw were truly stunning and came in all shapes and sizes.
White Tree Nymph Butterflies were everywhere.
Giant Owl Butterfly
Rescues and Adoptions above and beyond butterflies
We learnt that any other creature you come across, other than the butterflies, have been rescued and adopted, some of these are:
Mango and Houdini, Flamingos
You have to love the elegant, and regal-like style of flamingos. (Note to self – apply to be a flamingo in my next life).
Mango and Houdini, from the Caribbean, have been partners for 38 years (far more than most human partnerships) and are obviously in no hurry to leave their life of royalty.
If only they would have stopped moving their heads – my photo is blurry.
Pink Flamingo couple – Mango and Houdini.
Jerome the Iguana
Jerome, originally from South America, was having his daily snooze when we arrived, but like every garden inhabitant, he was definitely living the life.
Jerome the Iguana having a snooze.
In the wild these creatures can just drop from a height of three double decker buses to escape predators such as large birds of prey. I’d say a crane would be needed to lift Jerome now – he’s so well fed!
Shadow the Macaw and Little E
Shadow, the Blue and Gold Macaw from South America, holds pride of place for being the largest parrot at the Gardens and seemed to thoroughly enjoyed swooping around visitors giving them a fright. He would then land on a decent sized branch, totally ignore everyone and start picking his toenails!
Shadow the in-house Blue and Gold Macaw
“Little E” the Eclectus green parrot was obviously the PR person in the establishment and happy to have his photograph taken, or even display his knowledge of photography to anyone willing to listen.
Budding photographer “Little E” the curious Eclectus green parrot
Red-footed Tortoises.
Honestly – there’s so much to learn about wildlife. These tortoises were slowly “stacking” on top of each other and can get up to four or five in a stack. We watched with interest because at first the word “frisky” sounded more accurate, but the reason they stack is to get the best spot for basking!
Takes them a long time to get to the stacking position though!
Tortoises Stacking (apparently!)
Next – the Insectarium
Now, insects really aren’t my thing, but they seem to be a huge attraction to the younger generation.
The Insectarium includes bugs that look like leaves, insects that could for all the world be a twig, and massive spiders that look like spiders because they are. (Bird eating spiders that are the largest of their species in the world).
Obviously these critters weren’t just roaming around, but I was keen to move back to the butterflies!
Leaf Insect – looking more like a leaf than a leaf!
A Dragon Headed insect!
Poison Dart Frogs?
How can any little creature showing off such beautiful colours be poisonous? Well those at the Butterfly Gardens aren’t the poisonous (at least not now) and live on a tasty diet of fruit flies. (Another note to self – maybe fruit flies are the way to have such a healthy and attractive looking skin?)
Blue Poison Dart frog
Carnivorous Plants!
How much more exciting could this day get – we came across the tropical pitcher plant that is said to be the most exotic and beautiful carnivore of all. On hearing that some of these killers have even been known to eat rats in the natural environment it was fingers and hands to the side for me!
Pitcher Plant – Carnivore Plant – keep hands beside your arms!
Farewell to the Psychedelic Butterfly Gardens
All too soon it was time to get back on the bus for our next stop. The beautiful butterfly experience was surreal and by the end of the walk I’d even grown to like some of the unusual creatures we’d met. (Not all mind you!)
Brown Clipper Wing Butterfly
Golden Helicon Butterflies blended in with the orange Hibiscus flowers.
White Tree Nymph Butterflies ruled.
Next stop Butchart Gardens!
Need to Know:
- Prices (Canadian $) Adults – $16.50 / Seniors – $12.00
- Opening hours vary throughout the year but are basically from 10 am 4 pm. (Open every day except Christmas).
- For more in depth information, visit – Butterfly Gardens
- Grayline buses have a excellent tours that include the Butterfly Gardens.
- Allow at least two hours to walk through the Gardens, Insectarium etc.
- Take water with you as the gardens are enclosed and quite humid (because they are tropical).
- Walk around twice if you have the time to see what you missed on the first lap.
