Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Butterflies play a very crucial role in the ecosystem in bringing food to our plates. To conserve and to know about the presence of such species at Ralamandal Wildlife Sanctuary, a survey was done on Sunday in which two rare species of butterflies were found. The survey was conducted by the Forest Department in collaboration with Wildlife and Nature Conservancy (WNC), an NGO.
Ralamandal in-charge Yohan Katare said that this was the first survey on butterflies performed by the forest department and the NGO in which the teams together explored about the presence of butterflies in the sanctuary.
‘The survey was done by as many as 60 people who were divided into four teams. The survey was done till 12 pm in which teams explored around the sanctuary,’ he said. Forest department’s senior officials along with retired officials also participated in the survey.
Lemon pansy species |
Surendra Bagada of WNC said, ‘In the survey around 50 species of butterflies were found and potentially 75+ species of butterflies is possible to be found in the entire sanctuary’. ‘Some rare species, which were never seen in Indore were found at Ralamandal, which includes Red Flash, Plains Royal Blue, Tri-coloured Pied Flat, Painted Lady and Rice Swift. More survey will be done in the near future to explore more about the butterflies’ presence in Ralamandal,’ Bagada said.
He said that butterflies’ species live one to two weeks and they are the pollinators so they help in carrying seeds and pollens of one plant to another which helps in plantation and vegetation. ‘They play an important role in bringing food to our plates. Such insects are very important for the natural habitat,’ he added. The WNC has performed several surveys in various wildlife sanctuaries in the state and had explored several species of birds and butterflies.
