The backyard birds have been in a bit of a lull as of late, with the high heat making them a lot less active.
But the butterflies have been quite busy enjoying the zinnias!

This beautiful gal, an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, showed up the other day and was in no hurry to leave.

She flitted from one flower to another…

…but seemed to show a definite preference for pink.

Although she has a few nips and tears at the edge of her wing, she was still shimmery and had both tails intact, so she probably hadn’t been out of the chrysalis for too many days.

A thunderstorm was rolling in pretty quickly, but I got one final shot of her before she flew off and I darted in.

There really is something magical about watching a butterfly fluttering about!