Gainesville students and residents can see nature take flight at this weekend’s ButterflyFest.
On Saturday and Sunday, the Florida Museum of Natural History will be abuzz with activities including butterfly releases, gardening workshops, a plant sale, entertainment from local performers and activities for children. Attendees can pay for tickets to behind-the-scenes tours of the museum’s research facility and a photography workshop inside the Butterfly Rainforest exhibit.
The festival officially begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday, but ticketed events will begin at 8:30 a.m., and the plant sale opens today.
Catherine Carey, public programs coordinator for the museum, said the plant sale will include 120 butterfly-attracting plant species, including milkweed, which attracts monarchs, and others with whimsical names like turkey tangle fogfruit and sneezeweed.
Associate marketing and public relations director Paul Ramey said this year’s plant sale will be the largest yet.
He said butterfly gardening — planting specific plants to attract specific butterflies — is becoming very popular.
“People want to grow their own butterfly gardens,” Ramey said. “If you plant host plants, it’s amazing how fast [butterflies] find them.”
Another aspect of the festival is the photography workshops, Ramey said, allowing participants to capture exotic photos inside the Butterfly Rainforest with tripods, which are usually banned.
The butterfly releases, when native species are let out into the natural environment, are also a crowd favorite, he said.
Kate Logan, a 20-year-old elementary education junior and museum intern, said she has worked to develop activities for the children’s area.
She said the activities aim to teach kids about butterflies’ life cycles and their role in keeping plants healthy.
“I really hope the kids can take away the importance butterflies and pollinators have in the world,” Logan said.
A complete festival schedule, along with tour and workshop ticket information, is available at www.flmnh.ufl.edu/butterflyfest/.
