FIRST BUTTERFLY PARK OF NORTHEAST

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Context: A butterfly park established by the forest department in a village near the India-Bangladesh international border in South Tripura district is now attracting tourists from all over the country and Bangladesh.

Details:

• The Butterfly EcoPark at Chottakhola, close to the Trishna WildLife sanctuary is the first butterfly park of northeast.
• Opened in 2016 in an area of ​​5.5 hectares with 250 species of butterflies.
• This park is near the endangered bison park in Trishna Wildlife Sanctuary and Indo-Bangla Maitri Park to commemorate the Liberation War of Bangladesh.
• The surroundings attract many tourists and this will help the economic development of Tripura.
• You can also export butterflies and earn a lot of foreign currency.

About Butterflies:

• Butterflies are considered indicators of good ecological balance and healthy nature.
• Butterflies have a very short life span. They live only 15 to 30 days
• Tripura recently declared the Common Birdwing as the state butterfly.
• In recent years, due to human pollution and climate change, the number of butterflies and their natural habitats are decreasing.

What is a butterfly?

• Butterfly is adult flying stage of certain insects belonging to the order or group called Lepidoptera.
• The word "Lepidoptera" means "scaly wing" in Greek.
• Like other insects, butterflies have six legs and three main body parts: head, thorax (breast or midsection), and abdomen (tip of the tail).
• It also has two antennas and an exoskeleton.

Butterfly life cycle

• The life cycle consists of the stages that an organism goes through from the beginning to the end of its life.
• Butterflies go through a process called complete metamorphosis during their lifetime.
• This means that the butterfly goes from the initial larval stage, when it is a caterpillar, to the final stage, when it becomes a beautiful and beautiful adult butterfly.
• The life cycle of a butterfly has four stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult.

About Trishna Wildlife Sanctuary:

• 111 kms from Agartala
• Covers an area of 197.7 sq km
• Established in 1988.
• The vegetation consists of four types of forest – the tropical semi-evergreen forest, the east Himalayan lower Bhanar Sal, Moist mixed deciduous forest and the Savanah woodland.
• The main attractions of the sanctuary are the Indian Gaur (Bison), Deer, Hooklock Gibbon, Golden langur, Pheasants, Lalmukh Bandar, Wild Boar, Wild Cat, Leopard.

PRACTICE QUESTION Q) Discuss the ecological importance of Butterflies. (150 words)

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