The Garden Route is the perfect place the ‘butterfly people’,,.
A butterfly landed on a little girl’s nose during lockdown – and that was the start of a fascination with butterflies that has now developed into yet another hobby for her grandfather, CHRIS VAN GASS
South Africa has between 700 and 800 species of butterflies, and the Plettenberg Bay area boasts its own little gems. It just takes a walk around the garden to uncover beauties such as the Painted Lady, Blue Pansy, Garden Inspector, Yellow Pansy, and Common Diadem…
Butterflies are generally a ‘man’ thing, with lepidopterists (or butterfly fund is) historically, mostly being male. Perhaps it is because of this that these insects – which can hear, see, smell and taste – have such interesting and pretty names.
Kevin Cockburn, a member of the Lepidopterists’ Society of Africa, says while many scientists are involved in the society, there are large numbers of amateurs who make up the organisation.
“Like birdwatching, butterfly-watchers have created life-lists of the species they have seen. There is also a move to keep’ lockdown lists’ and those bitten by the bug range from amateurs, to actual lepidopterists who still collect species in the ‘old way’ – armed with a butterfly net and field equipment.
“Digital photography has changed the hobby. It is much easier now to take a photograph for purposes of identification than trying to guess from a mere fly-past what you have seen.
“But the frustration is still there when you line up your subject and it flits away…which is when it becomes a Bloody Mary’,” says Cockburn.
Watching and identifying butterflies and recording the sightings and pooling knowledge can also help with citizen science to gain more information about their habitats and movements, and the influence, if any, caused by climate change.
David Edge, who has been instrumental in conserving the rare Brenton Blue butterfly near Knysna, says butterflies are a good indicator of the health of the environment and, as a hobby can be as satisfying, if not more so, than birdwatching or fishing.
“They will lure you into their world of fascinating beauty. Butterfly people are obsessed when chasing a new species, charging around with nets in hand. Often, they don’t look on the ground and fall flat on their faces.
“But these are experiences we can always laugh about afterwards,” he chuckles.
Visit www.lepsoc.org.za to learn more.
• A new trend, in which females appear to have made their mark is through the Caterpillar Rearing Group (CRG). Moth species outnumber butterfly species in South Africa by about 10-1. The rearing group, pioneered by Hermann Staude, take caterpillars from their perches and, like silkworms in one’s youth, are fed and studied through their life-cycle, until they turn into moths. But that’s another story…