In Montreal, If an African Butterfly Beats Its Wings …
Montréal, January 25, 2008 – The 11th edition of the Insectarium and Botanical Garden of Montréal Butterflies Go Free event will take wing from February 21 to April 27, featuring a great Canadian premiere: several dozen species of African butterflies, never before seen here! Hundreds of exotic butterflies and moths from butterfly farms in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda will be putting on a colourful show, while supporting the social economy and biodiversity in their homelands. Come admire over 15,000 winged wonders, also imported from Central America and Asia. It's a stirring reminder of our world's beauty and the fragility of nature around the globe!
Spectacular African butterflies
Africa stretches 7,500 kilometres from west to east, and 8,000 km from north to south. So it's no surprise that there are extraordinary butterflies in every region of this huge continent. These winged beauties, ever on the go, come in a seemingly endless array of shapes and are masters of mimicry. They're sure to charm visitors during their stay in the Montréal Botanical Garden's Main Exhibition Greenhouse.
The stars of the 2008 edition of Butterflies Go Free are Papilio demodocus, very active butterflies from sub-Saharan Africa. Visitors can glimpse females laying their eggs on their host plant, Citrus.
Other guests will be those great pretenders, Papilio dardanus – the males always look the same, but the females come in fourteen different shapes! Some of their forms resemble butterfly species that are unappetizing to predators, as an excellent means of defence.
African monarchs, also known as Danaus chrysippus, are sure to delight many visitors with their flamboyant hues. These "aposematic" markings warn would-be attackers that the butterflies are toxic. Note that this species has been reported at altitudes of about 3 000 meters in the Himalayas.
The African "butterfly effect"
It is said that a butterfly beating its wings can unleash a hurricane on the other side of the world. So just imagine what hundreds of African butterflies can do in terms of supporting the communities around the butterfly farms where they were raised! For the 2008 edition of Butterflies Go Free, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency have granted the Montréal Insectarium a special permit to import and show the general public 90 new species of butterflies from Africa. The Insectarium will not only be offering a unique exhibition, but also creating jobs in various African communities located near the forests where the butterflies are reared. It's much better than cutting down trees!
Just like the butterfly farming experts in Costa Rica, who are leaders in the field, some African farms have chosen to protect their forests and their future. One of them is a project named "Kipepeo" ("butterfly" in Swahili), in Kenya, where the forest is considered a valuable and inexhaustible resource provided it is respected. As a reliable and well-organized supplier, Kipepeo will protect a forest of over 40,000 hectares and upwards of 250 butterfly and moth species. The Insectarium will be ordering many chrysalises from this farm, and encouraging two other butterfly farms located in Tanzania and Uganda.
Butterflies in African tradition
Africa is an ethno entomologist's paradise, full of butterfly myths, beliefs and traditions. They are considered powerful symbols by many African tribes, which use rattles and anklets made from moth cocoons in healing, fertility and other rites. Some peoples wear butterfly masks during rain-making ceremonies, signifying the renewal of nature (including insects) or for fertility or harvest rites.
Facts to give you "butterflies in your stomach"!
Butterflies Go Free 2008
Best time to visit Morning
Number of butterflies released during the even tAbout 15,000
Number of butterflies in the greenhouse at any one time About 2,000
Number of butterflies released every day About 100*
Total number of species present during the event*Over 90
Sources: Australia, Belize, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Ecuador, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Philippines, Surinam, Tanzania, Thailand and Uganda. More than 15 countries
Selection criteria for chrysalises (future butterflies) Legality, price, level of activity, longevity, showiness, adaptation to our conditions, hatching percentage, suitability to theme.
* Visitors can expect to see about fifty different species on any given day.
2008 Butterflies Go Free
February 21 to April 27
Tuesday to Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Main Exhibition Greenhouse
Open Monday, March 3 (spring break) and March 24 (Easter)
Sugaring-off Time … in town
Learn some secrets of maple trees and their very popular products.
Free activity, charge for maple taffy tasting ($) (cancelled in case of bad weather).
>From March 1 to 9, and on Saturdays and Sundays from March 15 to April 13, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m
NEW: Mapple tales, storytelling (in French), March 2 and 9, 11:30 a.m., 1 and 2 p.m.
Tree House
The Montréal I'Insectarium is proud to support the 2008 UNICEF Spread the Net campaign, and to help halt the spread of malaria in Africa without harming natural habitats or the environment.
For more information on the Spread the Net campaign: www.spreadthenet.org
For more information on Montréal's Nature Museums
(Biodôme, Insectarium, Botanical Garden and Planetarium):
www.museumsnature.ca
January 26, 2008
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