Pauline and I met on a butterfly farm in Costa Rica.
(It’s true! Check out the family business here: www.montezumagardens.com)
Because of that we are fascinated by butterflies around the world, and Taiwan has some amazing ones! We aren’t butterfly experts but we are enthusiasts. So as we encounter Taiwan’s flying jewels we’ll post them here, along with where we spotted them and our best guess at an ID!
P.S. Butterflies can be spotted frequently on almost any hike you go on here in Taiwan. But if you are particularly interested in doing some butterfly site seeing, here are some of the places we suggest.
Butterflies we’ve Sited: (in no particular order)
What: Appias lyncida eleonora Where: Maolin, Pingtun County
What:Lycaenidae Where: Maolin,Pingtung County
What: Hesperiidae
Where: Jiaoxi, Yilan Cnty
What: Lycaenidae
Where: Jioaxi, Yilan County
What:Papilio memnon Where: Wulai,Taipei County
What: Nymphalidae Where: Jiaoxi, Yilan
What: Cyrestis thyodamas formosana
Where: Jiaoxi, Yilan County
What: Cyrestis thyodamas formosana Where: Maolin, Pingtung County
What: Polygonia c-aureum lunulata
Where: Jiaoxi, Yilan
Where: Jinan Trail, Taipei What: Papilio memnon heronus
What:Limenitinae Neptis Where:Wulai, Taipei County
What: Graphium sarpedon connectens Where: Wulai, Taipei County
What: Coliadinae – Eurema Where: Jiaoxi, Yilan
AN URBAN BUTTERFLY:
What:Papilio demoleus Linnaeus Where: Taipei City
This is the very first butterfly I (Pauline) saw in Taiwan! I could hardly believe it when I glanced over and saw this gorgeous butterfly on the gloved hand of a cheery street sweeper. So surreal but perfect! A butterfly 
in the city, saying hello as we started our new lives as urban dwellers.
What: Neope bremeri taiwana Matsumura Where: Wulai, Yilan County
What: Papilio
Where: Fuyuan Valley, Hualien
Where: Jianan Trail, Taipei What: Papilio dialis tatsuta
What: Idea leuconoe clara Where: Taipei Zoo