Save the Flutter bys!
This is Tatters, an unfortunate little soul who seemed to have his wings damaged in the recent storms. JJ noticed him first and we thought he was simply basking in the sun enjoying the golden rays. I went over for a closer look and realised the poor mite had really been through the wars! His wings were all torn and broken so he was unable to fly away!
I’m a bit pathetic when it comes to helpless creatures and my heart broke to see the state of little Tatters. He needed no coaxing to hop on to my finger and then clinging to the warmth he refused to budge! I had no idea what to do so called JJ as he is a bit of an information sponge and would probably know what to do! Luckily the know-it-all came through! JJ, now being a well trained know -it-all called in the troops (LatexTrooper) and assigned box-finding duties to Commander 1! “Commander 1 and 2” I hollered “This is a distress signal! Supplies urgently required. We have a casualty – you know the drill!” The troops rallied round and soon we had a cardboard box filled with various types of leaves and blooms from the garden….
Ok so it didn’t actually happen exactly like that….it was more of a case of a distressed and dewy eyed Kaz with a butterfly attached to her finger, sort of yelling – “boys, boys!!! Poor Flutterby! Help! Help now!” until I captured their attention. JJ then used the powers of Google to create a sugar syrup to rehydrate and nourish the little critter! Meanwhile the chinese take-away sat growing cold amongst the chaos! I couldn’t help thinking that it may be Tatters’ last supper so I couldn’t eat anything till he’d been fed. I did feel a bit guilty though hearing the boys tummies rumble…..but hey – they weren’t on death row!
JJ relieved Commander Latex of his duties so he could eat his dinner which I thought very honourable. He then disrobed his fatigues, popped on a chefs hat and whipped up a sugary elixir of life that would hopefully entice our little Tatters! Butterflies taste through their feet so JJ dipped the little critters toes into the warm syrup mix. Tatters’ senses came to life as he tasted the sweet nectar though his proboscis (little twirly thing like a straw that sucks up the moisture). He fluttered his little itty bitty wings and my heart leaped with joy! My heart was singing!
I’m not sure he’ll ever be able to fly very far again, but look at it this way; If you were injured in a storm and collapsed on the grass, a little broken soul who went the wrong way, wouldn’t it be nice if someone was able to gently pick you up, put you somewhere safe, provide you with your dietary needs and give you a little warmth?
If you aren’t piddling yourself laughing by this point and are interested in rescuing butterflies we found this great site here with loads of useful tips: http://butterflyrescue.com/butterflyresources.htm
Butterflies aren’t just beautiful, they are also some of the pollinators that make our organic foods thrive! We’d be lost without them, so we really do owe them an awful lot. No bees or butterflies would mean no pollination and therefore no crops! That means you and I don’t get to eat! So, if you happen upon a little butterfly who looks like he needs some tlc, you’ll know exactly how to help them!
Peacock Butterfly
