Butterflies are among the most appealing of nature’s beautiful creations. Romy McCloskey, on the other hand, has a strong reason to treasure them more than others.
Romy’s mother passed away from cancer some years ago. Her mother, on the other hand, comforted her before she died that her spirit would live on.
“‘Romy, don’t worry,’ she said. “Just know that whenever you see butterflies, it’s me checking in on you to let you know I’m well and that I love you,” Romy told The Dodo.
Rather than relying only on butterfly encounters, Romy has taken it upon herself to ensure that the world has more of them. Romy brings caterpillars inside whenever she sees them in her garden so they may develop and metamorphose safely away from predators and other dangers.
Then she lets them go.
Romy has reared and released dozens of butterflies with great success. However, one just emerged from his cocoon in need of assistance.
On one side, the top and lower wings of this butterfly were torn. Even though he was generally healthy, his illness prevented him from flying or surviving on his own.
“I couldn’t bear putting him down,” Romy explained. “I decided I’d confine him to the house and feed him until he died.”
But then she had another thought.
Romy’s buddy learnt about the problem and provided her a tutorial on how to restore butterfly wings. She grabbed the necessary items: a towel, wire hanger, contact cement, toothpick, cotton swabs, scissors, tweezers, and talcum powder.
Romy had saved the corpse of another butterfly that had died. She’d make a transplant wing out of this.
Romy delicately cut away the injured piece of his wings after gently placing her delicate patient between a loop in the wire hanger.
Though it may appear to be a painful treatment, it is not. It’s similar to having a haircut when it comes to repairing damaged wings.
Romy then used contact cement to put components from the transplant wing into place with as much care and accuracy as possible. After it was sealed, a few talcum sprinkles assured that any undesired stickiness around the borders would be reduced as it dried.
The butterfly was virtually as good as new after that.
The butterfly’s big moment arrived after a day of post-op recuperation and a heavy breakfast of nectar given by Romy. He got to try out his new wings for the first time outside.
“I was concerned for him, but I supported him like a parent encouraging a child learning to ride a bicycle,” Romy explained. “Seeing him do his first loop around the yard astounded and eased me.”
The butterfly then lands on a branch after that initial lap.