Pests or pollinators? The knit relationship between plants and butterflies will be brought to an exhibition held in the Fata Morgana greenhouse from April 3 to May 20. Open daily except Mondays from 9am to 6pm.
The exhibition of tropical butterflies in the Fata Morgana greenhouse is one of the most popular events that Botanical Garden m. Prague is preparing. "We are organizing this year's sixth exhibition this year. Last year saw a record-breaking attendance when almost sixty thousand people came to see it in less than two months, " says Bohumil Černý, who is in charge of the Botanical Garden in Prague. m. Prague.
The first pupae in the Trojan Botanical Gardens arrived on March 21st. The staff of the garden attached them to wooden rods and placed them in special racks. This is necessary in order for the hatched butterfly to have enough space around it to stretch its wings. "This time we have ordered a total of 5390 puppies from the proven butterfly farm in Stratford-upon-Avon. We hope that the consignments will also show species we have not exhibited so far, "says Bohumil Černý.
Plants and butterflies together in nature create very close relationships. The caterpillars feed on the leaves, and they often become unwelcome pests of agricultural crops. But butterflies play a significant role as pollinators. "Unlike bees, they see the shades of red. They also have a long sash to reach nectar in otherwise inaccessible parts of the flowers. So they can pollinate plants that are not attractive to bees and other pollinators, " explains Eva Smržová, curator of the exhibition.
What kind of visitors can you look forward to? In addition to the attractive blue-winged Morpho family or Attacus nightmares, some of the species still unseen can be seen. "The interesting grandmother of Tithorea harmonia belongs to the same subfamily as the known monarch butterfly. This species occurs in nature from Mexico to South America, in 25 subspecies, and is poisonous because its caterpillars feed on poisonous plants of the toad-like family. The drawing of his wings mimics some non-toxic species, especially of the Heliconius genus, thus protecting them from predators. This phenomenon is called Bates Mimeze, " adds Eva Smržová.
Source: tz, edited editorially
