Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory
Encyclopedia
The Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory is a butterfly zoo
operated by the Niagara Parks Commission
in Niagara Falls
, Ontario
, Canada
. It is located about 10 minutes (9 kilometres (5.6 mi)) north of Niagara Falls
on the grounds of the Niagara Parks Botanical Gardens & School of Horticulture, which is 40 hectares (98.8 acre) in size.
The conservatory was opened in December 1996 with a gift shop, 200-seat theater/auditorium room, and a climate-controlled greenhouse
. The conservatory has over 2,000 tropical butterflies from over 60 different species. The conservatory glass dome is 1022 square metres (1,222.3 sq yd) in size with 180 metres (590.6 ft) of paths inside the greenhouse portion, which has a wide variety of foliage. The conservatory can accommodate up to 300 visitors per hour. Since captive butterflies usually have a life span of 2–4 weeks, the conservatory imports up to 3,000 butterflies per month from world butterfly farms in Costa Rica
, El Salvador
, the Philippines
, and Australia
. Special netting along the inside of the glass dome keeps the butterflies from getting stuck to it and from dying from hypothermia
. Butterfly food plants at the conservatory such as Lantana
, Cuphea
, Zinnia
, Ixora
, Liatris
, and Pentas
are replaced every 2–3 weeks because caterpillars have large appetites.
Visitors who want the butterflies to land on them should wear bright clothes, move slowly, and wear perfume or cologne. Eurasian quails, turtles, goldfish, toads, and beetles help keep the insect population in balance. The Emergence area allows visitors to view the butterfly life cycle and produces over 45,000 butterflies annually.
The species of butterfly at the conservatory include the Banded Orange
, Blue Morpho
, Common Mormon, Cydno Longwing, Doris Longwing, Gulf Fritillary
, Julia, Low's Swallowtail, Monarch, Mosaic
, Owl
, Red Lacewing, Sara Longwing
, and Small Postman
.
Butterfly zoo
A butterfly zoo, or butterfly house, is a zoo which is specifically intended for the breeding and display of butterflies. Some butterfly houses also feature other insects, spiders, scorpions, etc.- History :...
operated by the Niagara Parks Commission
Niagara Parks Commission
The Niagara Parks Commission, or Niagara Parks for short, is an agency of government of Ontario which maintains the Ontario shoreline of the Niagara River.- History :...
in Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls, Ontario
Niagara Falls is a Canadian city on the Niagara River in the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario. The municipality was incorporated on June 12, 1903...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It is located about 10 minutes (9 kilometres (5.6 mi)) north of Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls
The Niagara Falls, located on the Niagara River draining Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, is the collective name for the Horseshoe Falls and the adjacent American Falls along with the comparatively small Bridal Veil Falls, which combined form the highest flow rate of any waterfalls in the world and has...
on the grounds of the Niagara Parks Botanical Gardens & School of Horticulture, which is 40 hectares (98.8 acre) in size.
The conservatory was opened in December 1996 with a gift shop, 200-seat theater/auditorium room, and a climate-controlled greenhouse
Greenhouse
A greenhouse is a building in which plants are grown. These structures range in size from small sheds to very large buildings...
. The conservatory has over 2,000 tropical butterflies from over 60 different species. The conservatory glass dome is 1022 square metres (1,222.3 sq yd) in size with 180 metres (590.6 ft) of paths inside the greenhouse portion, which has a wide variety of foliage. The conservatory can accommodate up to 300 visitors per hour. Since captive butterflies usually have a life span of 2–4 weeks, the conservatory imports up to 3,000 butterflies per month from world butterfly farms in Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
, El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
, the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. Special netting along the inside of the glass dome keeps the butterflies from getting stuck to it and from dying from hypothermia
Hypothermia
Hypothermia is a condition in which core temperature drops below the required temperature for normal metabolism and body functions which is defined as . Body temperature is usually maintained near a constant level of through biologic homeostasis or thermoregulation...
. Butterfly food plants at the conservatory such as Lantana
Lantana
Lantana is a genus of about 150 species of perennial flowering plants in the verbena family, Verbenaceae. They are native to tropical regions of the Americas and Africa but exist as an introduced species in numerous areas, especially in the Australian-Pacific region. The genus includes both...
, Cuphea
Cuphea
Cuphea is a genus containing about 260 species of annual and perennial flowering plants native to warm temperate to tropical regions of the Americas. The species range from low-growing herbs to semi-woody shrubs up to 2 m tall. Commonly they are known as cupheas, or, in the case of some species,...
, Zinnia
Zinnia
Zinnia is a genus of 20 species of annual and perennial plants of family Asteraceae, originally from scrub and dry grassland in an area stretching from the American Southwest to South America, but primarily Mexico, and notable for their solitary long-stemmed flowers that come in a variety of bright...
, Ixora
Ixora
Ixora is a genus of flowering plants in the Rubiaceae family. It consists of tropical evergreen trees and shrubs and holds around 500 species. Though native to the tropical and subtropical areas throughout the world, its centre of diversity is in Tropical Asia. Ixora also grows commonly in...
, Liatris
Liatris
Liatris is a genus of ornamental plants in the Asteraceae family, native to North America, Mexico, and the Bahamas. These plants are used as a popular summer flowers for bouquets.They are perennials, surviving the winter in the form of corms....
, and Pentas
Pentas
Pentas is a genus of the Rubiaceae family of flowering plants. Pentas lanceolata is a particularly popular species. The plants have dark green, lance-shaped, somewhat furry and deeply veined leaves providing a backdrop for prolific clusters of never-ending, five-petaled flowers. These may be red,...
are replaced every 2–3 weeks because caterpillars have large appetites.
Visitors who want the butterflies to land on them should wear bright clothes, move slowly, and wear perfume or cologne. Eurasian quails, turtles, goldfish, toads, and beetles help keep the insect population in balance. The Emergence area allows visitors to view the butterfly life cycle and produces over 45,000 butterflies annually.
The species of butterfly at the conservatory include the Banded Orange
Dryadula phaetusa
Dryadula phaetusa, also known as the Banded Orange Heliconian, Banded Orange, or Orange Tiger, is a species of butterfly . The sole representative of its genus, the Banded Orange Heliconian is native from Brazil to central Mexico, and in summer it can be found rarely as far north as central Kansas...
, Blue Morpho
Morpho peleides
The Peleides Blue Morpho, Common Morpho, or The Emperor is an iridescent tropical butterfly found in Mexico, Central America, northern South America, Paraguay, and Trinidad....
, Common Mormon, Cydno Longwing, Doris Longwing, Gulf Fritillary
Gulf Fritillary
The Gulf Fritillary or Passion Butterfly, Agraulis vanillae, is a striking, bright orange butterfly of the family Nymphalidae, subfamily Heliconiinae. These were formerly classified in a separate family, the Heliconiidae or longwing butterflies, and like other longwings this species does have long,...
, Julia, Low's Swallowtail, Monarch, Mosaic
Colobura dirce
The Dirce Beauty, also known as the Mosaic or Zebra Mosaic, is a butterfly of the Nymphalidae family. It is found in Central America and the Northern parts of South America.The length of the fore-wings is about 33 mm....
, Owl
Caligo memnon
The Owl is a butterfly of the Nymphalidae family. It is also known as the Pale or Giant Owl Butterfly. The species can be found in the rainforests and secondary forests of Mexico down to the Amazon rainforest....
, Red Lacewing, Sara Longwing
Sara Longwing
The Sara Longwing is a species of neotropical heliconiid butterfly found from Mexico to the Amazon Basin and southern Brazil. It is a colourful species: the dorsal wing surface is black with a large medial patch of metallic blue that is framed by two bands of white on the forewings. The Sara...
, and Small Postman
Heliconius erato
The Red Postman is one of about 40 Neotropical species of butterfly belonging to the genus Heliconius. It is also commonly known as the Small Postman, the Red Passion Flower Butterfly, or the Crimson-patched Longwing.-Description:The species is remarkably variable in colour and form throughout...
.