Ode to Kahukura  — the New Zealand Red Admiral Butterfly

Dear Kahukura,

You perch gracefully on your flower.

Your bold red and black wings are symmetrical.

The way you both drink water and feed off the sap of hebe plants amazes me.

You look so harmless, yet you can beat the wasps in sap battles.

How do you stay so brave?

How does the stinging nettle not sting you?

Your delicate wings carry such a great body.

How do you flutter gracefully around me?