93 butterfly species recorded
HAPOLI, 8 Oct: Ninety-three species of butterflies were recorded during the 8th edition of the Ziro Butterfly Meet (ZBM), organized as part of the 67th National Wildlife Week celebration.
The meet, jointly organized by the Hapoli forest division and conservation group Ngunu Ziro, concluded at Pange here in Lower Subansiri district on Friday. The 8th ZBM was primarily focused on exploring Tale valley, in addition to Pange area of the Tale Wildlife Sanctuary, for butterflies and moths. A total of 18 species of butterflies were recorded from Tale valley.
Among the important species recorded during the meet were the brown forester (Lethe serbonis), which is legally protected in India under Schedule II of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. Another important species of skipper butterfly recorded was the Manipur ace (Sovia malta).
One of the significant findings of the meet was the sighting of the Great Hockeystick Sailor butterfly (Neptis aspasia), which was photographed for the second time in Tale valley after being rediscovered after 68 years from Arunachal Pradesh by Chandrasekharan et al (2021) in September 2021.
However, the most interesting finding of the meet was the sighting of the female form of the eastern courtier butterfly (Sephisa chandra) in Pange, which was photographed in the process egg-laying. This is probably the first photograph of a female eastern courtier from Arunachal Pradesh. This species is legally protected in India under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
Other important butterflies seen during the meet were the giant hopper, the white owl, the yellow owl, the Bhutan glory, a female brown gorgon, blue caliph, and three species of wood browns.
The total number of sightings of butterflies rose up this year to 93 from 59 recorded in the last edition of the ZBM – an increase of about 58 percent since the last edition.
Addressing the closing ceremony at Pange, Hapoli Forest Division DFO Abhinav Kumar said that “the meet was a grand success in terms of both numbers and uniqueness of the species spotted.”
Ngunu Ziro president Pura Tama said that “efforts will be kept up in the future too for the conservation of butterflies of Tale Wildlife Sanctuary.” (DIPRO)
