The Pavilion of Wings is a seasonal exhibit that opens each year in mid-April and closes on Labor Day in September. More than 40 different butterfly and moth species and an array of plants take up residence every summer for our much-anticipated seasonal exhibit, the Pavilion of Wings. Wander through a unique changing and growing ecosystem. Witness wondrous free-flying creatures interacting with plant life and with each other and emerge with a better understanding of the environment needed for the survival of these spectacular animals.

By no means a static exhibit, the pavilion showcases the fascinating dance between butterflies and moths and the plants that surround them. These life forms have refined their impressive interaction over the course of millions of years.

You’ll be able to see, up close, how butterflies use their tubular mouthparts to obtain nectar from flowers. You’ll witness caterpillars as they feed on plant leaves and go through the process of their transformation into adult butterflies.

Various butterflies are present at different points during the season and the plants continue growing and changing throughout the process. This means that you can visit the Pavilion of Wings throughout the summer and have a different experience every time.

Some butterflies in the exhibit mate and lay eggs, however we regularly fill the pavilion with butterflies from all across the United States. Over half of the species we exhibit are oft-seen locals such as the monarch, mourning cloak and California dogface. Some of the more exotic butterflies are shipped in from all across the country.

Natural history museums work to understand the natural world by obtaining and studying specimens that they collect.

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