Caterpillars of Swallowtail

Just now I visited Wind Walker’s blog and found that she has posted something about two lovely caterpillars of swallowtails that she is feeding. This remind of me of my caterpillars. I have found a lot of caterpillars of Papilio machaon, a similar species with Wind Walker’s, on carrot leaves. I tried to feed them but most of them died or escaped from the box. Only one transformed into a cocoon. Here are some photos.

When I first found this charming creature it was crawling on the ground so I didn’t know what its host plant is. I took a cabbage leaf nearby for granted. But the worm refused to eat.

Summer of 2009: Wa People’s Village

Wengding is one of the reserved typical Wa-styled village. These thatched cottages are homes to Wa people living in mountains.

People work and keep livestocks on the ground while sleep on the second floor in case of beasts.

Summer of 2009: The Tiankeng And Rock Painting

One thing that makes the Wa Nationality culture famous is the rock painting discoverd in 1965. More than 3,000 years’ history makes it one of the most historical rock paintings of China.

A Wa-styled village. The art works are hidden in the cliff mountains behind it.

Summer of 2009: the Guangyun Mian Temple

Guangyun Mian Temple, locates north of Cangyuan, is more than 170 years old. It is one of the most influential Theravada Buddhist places in southeast of China. The temple is a mixture of Dai style temple with Han architectural building. You can see beautiful wood engraved works in the window pane, and the murals inside are famous. We visited there the second day morning. That few people was there because of the remoteness contributes to the peacefulness…

The east side of the temple. The yard is too small to step back for a integral shot of the building.

Summer of 2009: Twilight of Cangyuan

We arrived Cangyuan, a county located in southeast of Yunnan Province between China and Burma (location), late. It is famous for its Wa Nationality culture.

We intended to stay overnight in the resort (the village in the middle of picture), where my father had lived in last time he came here, but it is no longer operating.

If you turn around there was a peaceful reservoir because I took these two photos on a dam.

A Gift For My Girlfriend

This is the gift for my girlfriend’s 20th birthday. I collected these butterflies carefully during my summer holiday in remote Yunnan. Then we ordered a frame and collected some plant material. Last night when the first snow of 2009 was falling outside, we finished the mounting in a classroom. Here it is!

The species are: Euploea mulciber (the smaller blue and black one); Byasa polyeuctes (the black swallowtail); Thauria lathyi (the black and yellow one); Idea leuconoe (the white spotted one)