Veronica Crump – Working in the Butterfly Wing

Hi all! It’s Veronica here again. I’m currently wrapping up my second month as the Entomology Intern here at Reiman Gardens. So far I’ve been having a blast doing my daily tasks in the Butterfly Wing and in the lab. Every morning there is a routine I’ve gotten down of taking a stroll through the Wing and sweeping the path, watering the flowers, filling up the vertical feeders with honey water, and saving butterflies that have found their way to the other side of the netting. Some weekly jobs that I have are to refill the nectar dishes with honey water or gaterade water, prune dead flowers in the Wing, check the Monarch Zone outback for any caterpillars that have pupated, and run trash to the incinerator! Reiman Gardens sure knows how to keep a girl busy. I’m having fun and learning something new every day, and am loving spending time with such beautiful insects. I often find myself thinking, can this internship just last forever?

– Veronica Crump – Entomology Intern