Sharjah: The newly-opened Butterfly House in Sharjah is a rare treat for visitors to admire the winged beauties at close range and learn more about them from experts.
Nestled on the Al Noor Island in Khalid Lagoon, the house is the only attraction of its kind in Sharjah. It is home to around a dozen butterfly species, with around 150 to 200 individual butterflies fluttering about any given day.
The warm and humid air greets you right away when you step inside the large chamber, designed to mimic the conditions of the rainforests of Malaysia, where the butterflies arrive from every week as pupae – the cocoon-like developmental stage in the life of a butterfly.
Around 400 pupae arrive every week from Penang Island in Malaysia. At the house, they are arranged in neat rows, attached to bars on stands. Days later, they emerge as fully-grown butterflies and fly about the house, feeding on the nectar of flowers.
There are also artificial feeders that supply honey water and pineapple and orange slices. It is common to find the butterflies feeding on them.
To make the butterflies feel even more at home, some 20 plant and flower species native to their habitat have been made available at the house as well.
The best time to visit is midday as the natural sunlight beaming down through the ceiling glass draws out the butterflies, said Mark Wright, curator of the house.
Though there are photo ops aplenty, visitors are not allowed to touch the butterflies in order to prevent hurting the fragile creatures, he added.
Close encounters
In most cases, the butterflies don’t fly away if you approach them carefully, allowing for close encounters and easy photography.
Butterflies are hard to spot in the UAE, a desert country that is too hot for them and provides little in the way of flowers and nectar that butterflies need. However, many species migrate to the UAE when it is cooler during the winter months. One of the few exceptions is the lime butterfly, a “hardy, strong” species that can be found year-round in the UAE, Middle East and elsewhere, Wright pointed out.
Inside the house, most of the species are native to South East Asian countries and measure around five to eight centimetres. Butterfly are colourful creatures and even their names follow the patterns and colours on their wings in many cases.
There is the chocolate pansy, blue glassy tiger, autumn leaf, common rose and peacock pansy, for example.
“Butterflies give you hope, you can just watch them flutter about and feel happy. The Butterfly House staff are very helpful and you learn a lot about butterflies through them. This is definitely something unique and I really enjoyed my time,” said Hussain Kannout, 23, a visitor from Syria.
But it’s not just the beauty that attracts visitors – butterflies have intriguing characteristics as well.
“Butterflies don’t have a nose and use their back feet to ‘smell’ or test the food. They don’t have a tongue; they use their straw-like proboscis to suck up the nectar. Also, butterfly don’t hear – they feel the vibrations around them and can sense when you’re walking towards them,” Wright said.
Wright is an expert on butterflies and also works at the Emirates Zoo Park in Abu Dhabi. He is a consultant for Al Noor Island as well.
Tickets
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Tickets to Al Noor Island, which includes the house, cost Dh50 per adult and Dh30 for children below 12 and for children below 3 it is free.
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Butterfly House is open daily from 9am to 6pm.
- More details are available on www.alnoorisland.ae/butterfly-house/ and on 06 552 1900.
