Butterflies are fascinating creatures and have a special place in the insect world. Along with Moths, they belong to the order Lepidopterans, which constitute approximately 170,000 known species in the world. One tenth of these are butterflies. Their immense diversity, size, shape, colour and adaptability to virtually any climate has made them some of the most successful creatures on earth inhabiting warmer tropical rain forests, semi evergreen forests, moist and dry deciduous forests, coastal mangroves, swamps, scrub forests, open plains and grasslands.

Andhra Pradesh

The state of Andhra Pradesh occupies a very pivotal place in the eastern plank of Southern Peninsula. The Eastern Ghats comprises of an assemblage of discontinuous hill ranges and valleys originating in Orissa state and passing though Andhra Pradesh upto Nilgiris of Western Ghats. The Eastern Ghats region, plains and coastal regions, all constitute an area rich in faunal and floral biodiversity of immense value and importance.

Of the 17,000 species of butterflies of the world, about 1500 species are to be found in Indian sub-continent which is generally grouped in butterflies of oriental region. The states of North-east including Sikkim, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh contain more than 50% of the known Indian butterflies i.e. about 800 species. While the states dominated by Western Ghats comprise about 315 to 342 butterfly species, the state of Andhra Pradesh still remains unexplored completely. The butterfly species so far listed from the available sources, individual and group observations exceeds 200 species but needs further efforts to explore, record and document them.

Why conserve butterflies?

1. Butterflies feed on nectar flowering plants and in turn serve as important and indispensable pollinators of many flowering plants (both wild as well as crops grown by farmers such as Cadaba fruticosa (Kukka vominta) which grows only when pollinated by certain species of butterflies.

2. The caterpillars of most of the butterflies feed and develop on weeds instead of agricultural crops thus helping in controlling weeds on farms and appropriately be called friends of farmers

3. Butterflies are one of the most important food chain component of birds, reptiles, spiders and predatory insects.

4. More importantly, they are good indicators of environmental changes, being sensitive to and directly affected by changes in habitats, atmosphere and weather conditions.

5. Butterflies are of great esthetic value. Being beautiful and colourful they form part of the heritage of a nation and need to be preserved at all costs.

Causes that endanger butterflies

1. Habitat destruction, degradation of forests and their fragmentation.

2. Application of pesticides and weedicides is one primary cause for depletion of valuable butterfly species and their numbers.

3. Trampling and grazing also affect flora which harbour and sustain many butterflies, both adults and their larvae. Large scale eco-tourism programmes in vulnerable butterfly habitats can harm many butterfly species.

Measures to conserve butterflies

1. Legal protection accorded to butterflies and their dependant flora goes a long way in preserving habitats of butterflies. The butterfly species are protected in Schedule-I, Schedule-II and Schedule-IV. The first Schedule lists 15 butterfly species of peninsular India. Bio-piracy of butterflies of First Schedule can lead to imprisonment of up to 6 years and a fine. The Kaiser-i-Hind and Bhutan Glory top this list and are already entered into the red-data book. The Second Schedule lists 47 species of peninsular butterflies and subspecies.

2. Forest Department can make efforts to record and protect butterfly diversity in Andhra Pradesh. A.P. Biodiversity Board has started efforts in enlisting protection of butterfly species of the region.

3. Encouraging butterfly gardens in homes and institutions and erection of butterfly parks in various parks of the state go a long way in focusing and enhancing our commitment and interest towards these species and thereby create awareness and appreciation of these valuable but slowly dwindling creatures.

4. As a long term objective educating people to set up butterfly ranches and farms would help to restore and restock the butterfly population.

Dr. S. Tej Kumar is a retired Professor of Entomology from Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University (ANGRAU), Hyderabad.