A Look Inside Reptiland's Butterfly Exhibit

Today's show is all about weddings, we'll have dresses, beautiful bling, and we'll have your cake, and eat it too.

But first, we're going to talk about another growing trend at many wedding ceremonies, releasing butterflies.  That's right, doves are being replaced by these fluttering fliers. 

So we decided to go nose to antennae with these little guys and see what they're all about.

"We are in our butterfly house where we keep many different species of North American butterflies," said Tessa Falk, a Zookeeper for Reptiland. 

When you think of butterflies, you probably don't think of Reptiland, but this exhibit is one of its main attractions.

"We have lovely music, it's nice and warm and it smells wonderful, so it's a really relaxing, nice break from the reptiles here," said Falk.

Hundreds of butterflies flutter through the air in this greenhouse.

"We have many different ones," said Falk.

Like monarchs, queens, viceroys, painted ladies and swallow tails.  Reptiland even keeps a few moths in the exhibit, so that visitors can try to tell them apart.

"The best way to tell is by their antennae, the antennae on a butterfly looks very much like a golf club, where the antennae on a moth looks very much like a feather or a stick," said Falk.

Moths also transform inside cocoons, while butterflies emerge from a chrysalis and there are plenty of those on display.

"We pin them up so people can actually see the development process, so you can see them actually developing into a butterfly, hanging right here in the butterfly house, and as soon as they come out of the chyrsalis they hang upside down, dry, you can see that process as well, we open the doors, and that's how we release our butterflies into the exhibit," said Falk.

Much to the delight of visitors near and far.

Here are some other interesting butterfly facts for you, butterflies cannot hear, they taste with their feet and they can be found everywhere but Antarctica.

You don't have to go that far to find them though.  You can just head to Reptiland in Allenwood, now through October 31st.