P. 6 - LA PLAYA
APRIL / ABRIL 2014
WWW.PLAYACOMMUNITY.COM
EL VALLE’S BUTTERFLY HAVEN
B
utterflies are an indicator of
our environmental health;
they are important in our
natural world. They are significant
plant pollinators, a food source and
an indicator of the ecosystem’s well
being. With butterflies in global
decline, Jon and Linda from
Pennsylvania decided to open a
butterfly sanctuary in the mountain
town of El Valle. The sanctuary’s
mission is to educate on the ecological importance of butterflies and to
pave the road for butterfly preservation in Panama.
The Butterfly Haven (El Mariposario)
is an enclosed habitat where 12
different species of native butterflies
including the majestic Blue Morpho
live and breed in a very natural, yet
controlled environment. The Haven
grounds include a café, library, gift
shop, garden, laboratory and flight
house.
The
main
attraction, the flight
house, is a 1500
square
enclosed
walk-in area containing
over 200 butterflies.
Last year when Jon
and Linda arrived in
Panama, they began
importing
butterfly
chrysalises from Costa
Rica. When the chrysalises
arrived
early
February, they remained in the lab
until
metamorphosis
occurred.
When the transformation was
complete, the butterflies that
emerged from the pupa were
transferred to the flight house. Today
the flight house, which mimics an
ideal natural environment, is where
the butterflies live and procreate.
In the wild, butterflies have a 2%
survival rate, this means that for
every 100 eggs a female butterfly
lays, only two will survive to maturity.
This low number is due to a large
number of natural predators including birds and spiders, as well as a
scarcity of host plants.
A host plant is the plant that a
specific species of butterfly will lay
her eggs on. The type of plant is
important because it is what the
caterpillar will eat once hatched.
Since many host plants are consid-
ered weeds, most host plants are
generally cleared when land is
developed. Each species of butterflies has a different host plant; some
only have one, while others will lay
eggs on three of four different types
of plants.
By eliminating predators and
offering an array of host and nectar
plants, the flight house is a
butterfly’s haven. Butterfly eggs are
collected from the flight house and
taken to the lab for maturation. With
an abundance of host plants and
lack of predators present in the lab,
the eggs have a 75% chance of
reaching full maturity.
There is much to learn about butterflies beyond their beauty. Orlando,
the tour guide at The Butterfly Haven
offers educational tours in English
and Spanish. The guided tour takes
you to the flight house, lab and
garden; allowing you to walk through
their habitat. Such exhibits along
with information on the 12 housed
species of butterflies, illustrating the
4-stage lifecycle, does much to
preserve native butterfly habitats.
While The Butterfly Heaven offers a
unique experience, Jon and Linda
have several species of host plants
available for purchase, so visitors
can attract butterflies to their own
backyards.
To Advertise / Para Publicidad: [email protected]
To learn more about butterflies and
their ecological importance visit The
Butterfly Haven in El Valle. The
sanctuary is open everyday except
Tuesday from 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
It is easy to get to the Butterfly
Sanctuary from the main road into El
Valle. Make a left before the El Valle
Market (Melo’s and the Police
Station will be to your right). Follow
this road until you see a blue butterfly sign with a red arrow on your right
hand side. Hopefully, you will get to
watch some butterflies emerge from
their cocoons and take their first
baby butterfly flight.
The Butterfly Heaven charges a
small fee to help with its butterfly
conservation efforts: $4.00 for
foreigners, $2.50 for Panamanians
and Pensionados, and $1.00 for
children under 12 years of age.
VENDO TERRENO FRENTE A
CANCHA DE GOLF DE CORONADO
Área exclusiva, Vista espectacular, seguridad 24 horas,
frente al fairwzay del Hoyo 1
Desde 1,200 M2 en adelante
PLANS & CONSTRUCTION
Rodolfo E. Morales
Arquitecto
Tel: 345-4686 Cell: 6216-3352 E-mai