Bangalore goes social for butterflies

UNI

Posted Saturday , November 25, 2006 at 02:20

Bangalore: The country's first and world's largest butterfly park, set up at a cost of Rs five crore on the premises of Bannerghatta Biological Park near this garden city, will be dedicated to the nation by Union Minister for Science and Technology Kapil Sibal on Saturday.

Ms V Geethanjali, the Executive Director and Deputy Conservator of Forests, Bannerghatta Biological Park, said that the butterfly park was set up as a joint initiative of the Union Department of Bio-Technology, the Karnataka Government, University of Agricultural Sciences and NGO Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and Environment (ATREE).

She said the butterfly park - coming up in seven acres of land - was nestled between rivulets, wetlands and a hillock, an ideal place for many species of butterflies.

It comprised a butterfly conservatory, museum, an audio visual room, butterfly rearing house, plant rearing house and host plant garden which enabled captive breeding of butterflies throughout all seasons.

By undertaking 'Butterfly trail', visitors would get an opportunity to watch a minimum of 45 species of butterflies, including endangered ones, all through the year.

The huge dome of 120 x 40 size 'Butterfly Conservatory', meeting all possible habitat requirements, offered visitors a closer watch of butterflies. The Museum would have dioramas and other exhibits, including computer animations depicting various facets of its life.

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