Yet another butterfly species has been sighted at the Tropical Butterfly Conservatory in Srirangam here taking the total number of species recorded inside the conservatory so far to 116. The latest butterfly species that was recorded on Friday was the Dark Palm Dart, said a Forest Department official. The species could be commonly found in plains.
To attract butterfly species, about 300 species of host and nectar plants have been raised inside the 27-acre conservatory. The host plants raised inside the conservatory include lemon, False Ashoka, custard apple and curry leaf, while the nectar plants include Bauhinia purpurea, Zinnia peruvian and Ixora coccenia.
“During the North-East monsoon season, the conservatory with its green environment can be expected to attract more butterfly species,” said V. Muthukrishnan, a Junior Research Fellow working under the Forest Department at the conservatory.
The lush green environment inside the conservatory has also attracted various bird species since it was thrown open to visitors in late 2015. The Forest Department official said the 93rd bird species was recently recorded at the conservatory. The latest to be recorded was the Scaly breasted munia. The conservatory which was attracting visitors in good numbers from Tiruchi and elsewhere in the State has remained shut for visitors since late March owing to COVID-19 pandemic.