Prima Donnas of the Insect World

Positioned along the banks of the scenic Blackwater River, the Panhandle Butterfly House and Nature Center in Milton is both magical and educational.

Founders Jack and Fonda Weatherfell started the Butterfly House in a tent in the backyard of their Navarre home in 1997. They later worked with the county to move it to Navarre Park on Santa Rosa Sound, where it remained for 21 years. It has become a program of the nonprofit Keep Santa Rosa Beautiful Inc.

During its two decades in Navarre, the Butterfly House welcomed visitors from more than 40 different states and 15 countries. Visitation averaged about 14,000 people annually. But when the county announced plans to renovate the park and fix stormwater drainage issues, Keep Santa Rosa Beautiful knew that it wouldn’t be able to afford to rebuild the house.

Relocation became necessary, and the Butterfly House landed on 10 acres in the Milton Historic District.

“This wonderful organization has taught people about local ecology for a number of years, and we’re excited for our community to learn and benefit from it,” said Bethany Anderson, public information officer for the City of Milton. “Given Milton’s love for nature, this center is going to be a place for everyone to enjoy.”

What is now the center’s main building is the T.W. Jones House, which was home to Alice and Thomas W. Jones from 1897 to 1951. Jones renovated the house in the early 1920s, transforming it into a lovely bungalow as a gift for his wife. At more than 3,400 square feet in size, the house includes a full porch and multiple indoor spaces.

The house contains a history room with portraits of the Joneses and period furniture; a classroom and conference room; kitchen and office; and the Wings & Wonders Gift Shop. Gift shop proceeds go to support programming at the center.

Features of the attraction include a mounted butterfly collection donated by Dr. Tom Grow in 1999 and containing some 300 species from around the world. Plantings of native wildflowers, made possible by a grant from the Florida Wildlife Foundation, decorate the front yard. Nearby is a camellia garden.

A 1,600-foot vivarium is home to hundreds of butterflies.

On-site at the new home of the Panhandle Butterfly House, a 1,600-fooot, humidity-controlled vivarium that houses hundreds
of butterflies. Photo by Will Hepburn Photography

“We started building the vivarium last year, and it’s taken well over a year to get to where we are now,” said the center’s executive director, Pamela Murfey, in 2023.

“The vivarium is a humidity-controlled greenhouse,” she explained. “Visitors will enter through the attached 12-by-12 vestibule. Once inside the vivarium, they will encounter tropical to semi-tropical botanical gardens of native and Florida-friendly wildflowers, shrubs, vines and trees.”

Visitors are likely to spy native butterflies along a walkway that winds through the center’s gardens. Mounted chrysalids and feeding caterpillars can be viewed in an area where visitors learn about the butterfly life cycle. And, noted Murfey, “Thanks to Nancy and Mike DeSousa, we’ve got a hummingbird garden.”

Murfey also gave credit to Rachel Coggins.

“She’s a friend of mine and a master gardener,” she said. “She’s been instrumental in helping me accomplish many of the garden chores, and she helped bring in the home school group that we’re doing. We teach classes once a month.”

“The butterfly is the prima donna of the insect world,” Coggins said. “Its beauty and grace encourage us to learn more about nature and how we can better care for our environment. The Panhandle Butterfly House will be a premier location for locals and tourists to visit, enjoy and learn, and it is a joy and privilege to be part of it all.”

Home to Butterflies

The Panhandle Butterfly House and Nature Center, located at 4966 Henry St. in Milton, is open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wednesdays through Saturdays. The Butterfly Vivarium at the center is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., same days. Admission is $7 for adults and $5 for children ages 5 to 17. Children up to age 5 are admitted free of charge. (850) 741-9077; PanhandleButterflyHouse.org.