Butterflies: the giant owl (Caligo memnon)

Yesterday I shared the photo of a paper kite butterfly, the first good photo I took while at Butterfly Jungle at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park a few days ago. Today I’m sharing the second picture: it’s a giant owl, and once you see the pattern on its wings, you’ll understand why.

The giant owl butterfly is very large and the inside of its wings display a beautiful light metallic blue. Unfortunately the giant owl butterflies I saw that day all stood at rest with their wings closed. It was impossible to catch them in flight because of the amount of people in the enclosure.

Here’s a nice side angle of the giant owl butterfly, featuring some big owl eyes! Remember you can click on the photo to see a larger view.