A double flat butterfly (Celaenorrhinus pyrrha) found in Sikkim. The state houses about 700 species or butterflies. | Photo credit: special arrangement
Guwahati
A race to see the butterflies has been one of the most prominent aspects of the celebrations that mark the year 50 of Sikkim’s stateity.
Sikkim made the transition from a protectorate to state 22 of India on May 16, 1975.
In the frames: butterfly effect
Dance in the Park: A common Mormon (Papilio Polytes), on the left, performs a dance near a woman who performs a courtship exhibition in the Butterfly Park enclosure.
Holding: a common crow butterfly larva (eplea core) is dragged under a sheet. The butterfly park is an ideal reproduction place for these fascinating insects.
Data Treasury: Museum visitors that provides comprehensive information about butterflies within the Bannerughatta Biological Park in Bangalore.
Data Treasury: Museum visitors that provides comprehensive information about butterflies within the Bannerughatta Biological Park in Bangalore.
Hunt for nectar: Belenois Aurota, commonly known as Pioneer White, is a small -to -medium -sized pier.
Wide variety: Dark blue tigers (tirumala northerionis) and double brand crows (Euploea Sylvester).
Bold pattern: a cool tail of Lima (Papilio Demoleus), an extremely successful invader, in flight.
First flight: The Pieridae family butterflies are released in the conservatory dome.
Farm Hands: A laboratory assistant prepares food for the larvae, after cleaning the breeding trays in the chrysalide chamber.
A large flap: an aerial view of the butterflies park located in the middle of the exuberant green of the Bannerughatta Biological Park
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“We started the 16-day Butterthon, the first event of its specific type for butterflies, on May 1. This is not a speed test, but a quiet race to detect ecologically important butterflies in Sikkim,” Sonam Wangchuk Lepcha, the president of the Sikkim-TPCF Butterfly society.
TPCF expands to Thamblyok Putali Charphamba Famiyap, which, respectively, translates into a butterfly in four languages in the state of the Himalayas: Lepcha, Nepalí, Limboo and Bhutia.
Several lepidoptera, ornithologists and scientists citizens from other parts of India and abroad joined the event scheduled to conclude on May 16, marking the end of the 50s of Sikkim as a state. Participants include Indian Peter Lobo, the American Joseph Coleman Thompson JR and Sri Lanka Indika Upul Jayissa.
Lepcha said foreigners, for the first time, have visited Sikkim specifically to see butterflies.
Butterfly enthusiasts involved in the 16 -day Butterthon in Sikkim. | Photo credit: special arrangement
The Sikkim-TPCF butterfly society said the event had organized to promote the observation of butterflies as a new form of tourism in the state and contribute to the celebration of the “Dorado Year” of Sikkim.
Members of Butterfly society have been helping visitors detect and document butterflies in 7,086 SQ. The jungles of the state of km and the meadows of great altitude.
Around 700 species of butterflies, almost half of the number recorded in India, thrive in Sikkim. Of these, about 420 species or 61% of the butterflies in the state are concentrated in the Dzongu area of 78 km next to the Khangchendzonga National Park and the Biosphere Reserve.
Published – May 14, 2025 09:59 PM IST