I recently made a visit to Wings of Fancy – the butterfly exhibit at Brookside Gardens in Wheaton, Maryland. In its twelfth year, Wings of Fancy is an exhibit of free flying North American, Costa Rican and Asian butterflies in the South Conservatory. This year, the exhibit runs until September 21st.

This is the third year in a row I’ve spent some time at Wings of Fancy. Each year – there are new and different species of butterflies to see and photograph. Here are some of the photos of some of the Asian butterflies I took in August.

A Blue Clipper Butterfly

Blue Clipper Butterfly (c) 2008 Patty Hankins

A Tailed Jay Butterfly

Tailed Jay Butterfly (c) 2008 Patty Hankins

A Blue Tiger Butterfly perched on a purple flower

Blue Tiger Butterfly (c) 2008 Patty Hankins

A Common Lacewing Butterfly

Common Lacewing Butterfly (c) 2008 Patty Hankins

And finally photos of two Paper Kite Butterflies

Paper Kite Butterfly (c) 2008 Patty Hankins

Paper Kite Butterfly II (c) 2008 Patty Hankins

Wings of Fancy is always fun to visit – and a great place to photograph butterflies. The exhibit runs until September 21st this year. It is open daily from 10 AM – 4 PM. Admission is $ 5.00 for adults, $ 4.00 for children.