Restoring a lost beauty
Flapping their colourful wings, they hover from one flower to another. After collecting nectar, they float around to another destination, leaving spectators in awe of their mundane tasks. Indeed, butterflies are graceful creatures.
But these beautiful creatures are a rare sight in the port city. However, thanks to a privately-owned, six-acre stretched Butterfly Park adjacent to Chattogram's Shah Amanat International Airport, port city residents can enjoy their beauty once again.
While visiting the park on Thursday, this correspondent saw many visitors across generations at the park, passing their time amidst the butterflies.
According to officials, the park contains around 200 butterflies of 18 species.
Alim Uddin, curator and keeper of the park, said, "We have a laboratory in the park where we breed butterflies. The insect can live at best for 28 days. Months between March and September is their breeding season."
"They lay eggs on leaves while the larva eats the leaves until they transform into a butterfly. A larva turns into a butterfly in six to 12 days," said the curator.
Apart from the butterfly sanctuary, there are various rides in the park for children's amusement. There's also a big pond in the park where visitors can go for a boat ride. Additionally, there's an artificial lake and a butterfly museum.
Arko Chowdhury, a third-grader, was running after a butterfly in an attempt to catch it. Without success, he was seen to run after another.
His mother Neli Chowdhury said her children got to see a butterfly for the first time after visiting this park.
Mir Md Rifat, the park's operations manager, said the ticket price for adults is Tk 100 and Tk 50 for children, adding that the park remains open from 9:00am to 7:00pm every day.
Around 200 visitors come to the park on an average day but the number jumps to 300 to 400 on Friday and government holidays, he said.
"The park was established in 2010," he said, adding, "We've planted around 2,000 trees to create a natural habitat for the butterflies."
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