Hong Kong Wetland Park unveils butterfly show

Hong Kong Wetland Park opened the Flying Beauties event today. Running until October 28, it teaches visitors about the anatomy, lifecycle, survival strategies, and courtship behaviour of butterflies.

The park and the Lepidopterists' Society are jointly holding an exhibition of over 500 butterfly specimens from different parts of the world. A number of local butterfly specimens will be brought to life through 3D models so visitors can observe their behaviour.

With abundant nectar and larval food plants, the Wetland Park's Butterfly Garden is an ideal habitat for butterflies. The park has recorded 157 species of butterflies, accounting for over 60% of the total number of butterfly species recorded in Hong Kong. Even some uncommon species such as the swallowtail and the red lacewing can be spotted.

The exhibition reveals to visitors the microscopic world of butterflies, displaying some butterfly parts hardly visible to the naked eye, including the coiled proboscis, the shield-shaped scales and the iridescent wings. A butterfly can have up to 600 individual scales on just one square millimetre of its wing.

The park will also arrange a wide range of activities, including guided tours, summer dramas, playgroups, art workshops, and public lectures.