Key West Butterfly & Nature Conservatory in Monroe County, Florida

Photograph: The Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservatory Florida (cell phone).jpg by C Watts · CC BY 2.0 · Restored from the credited Wikimedia Commons file, normalized to the consistent attraction-card frame and converted to WebP by 1stFlorida.com. Portrait originals retain their complete composition over a softly blurred extension of the same photograph.

Monroe County attraction

Key West Butterfly & Nature Conservatory

Monroe County · South Florida & the Keys

A glass-enclosed, climate-controlled habitat at 1316 Duval Street holding live butterflies and free-flying birds.

ABOUT THIS PLACE

Fifty to sixty species of butterfly from around the world fly loose inside it, among flowering plants, small waterfalls and trees set up to give them what they need at each stage of life. The birds share the space: American flamingos walk the paths, and red-factor canaries, zebra finches, cordon-bleu finches and Chinese painted quail fly through. A learning center lets visitors look closely at caterpillars feeding and developing on their host plants, which is the part of a butterfly's life almost nobody sees. Because the whole thing is under glass and conditioned, it does not depend on weather, and it is one of the few attractions on this island that works as well in a downpour as in sunshine. It sits at the quiet end of Duval, near the Southernmost Point, so it fits naturally into a walk down the street rather than needing a separate trip. The two flamingos are called Rhett and Scarlett and are the birds people photograph. Attached to the conservatory is a gallery and shop called Wings of Imagination, showing acrylic shadow boxes by the artist Sam Trophia in which butterflies are preserved and suspended. It opens daily from nine in the morning until five, with last admission at 4:30 and the shop open until 5:30, closing at two on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. There is paid parking in the lot next door. The number is 305-296-2988

GETTING THERE

Get Directions ↗Official Website ↗

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