Tutubi, whose name came the Filipino word for dragonfly, is actually fond of butterflies, the most beautiful and colorful members of the insect world. Though still not equipped for it for it needs expensive telephoto lenses, he intends to pursue butterfly watching as a hobby besides travel and photography someday.

The Philippines is endowed with so many species of the six-legged creatures with colorful wings and a few days lifespan, some species probably yet to be discovered and documented.

The butterfly garden list below "spidered" from their official websites, and needs to be updated from time to time. These butterfly farms, besides being educational destinations for field trips, also double as suppliers of live butterfly release during weddings, and other events.

On butterfly releases, probably due to ignorance of most people, the released butterflies have very slim chance of surviving and multiplying in the area where they're released due to the absence of the host plants to lay their eggs on and their caterpillars need to survive. This is the way nature designed it, a butterfly species needs a specific partner plant (called host plant) to survive in this world, take away the host plant, you kill the butterfly (or drive them to extinction). That's why the presence of butterflies in an area is a sign of good ecological health of the place besides acting as an indicator of how clean the air is for they're also very sensitive to changes in the environment.

the common black and white butterfly called paper kite with scientific name Idea Leuconoe


Metro Manila Butterfly Farms:

The Orchidarium and Butterfly Pavilion
Orosa Street and Finance Drive
Rizal Park (Luneta), Manila, Philippines
Tel. No.: +63.2.527.6376; +63.2.527.6378
Admission: PhP100
How to get there: it's walking distance from LRT UN Avenue station. Jeepneys with Taft or Mabini signboards will pass by the place. It's beside the Chinese Garden in Luneta.

World of Butterflies Marikina
Champagnat corner Ordonez Sts
Brgy. Marikina Heights, Marikina City
Telephone No.: +63.2.941.3747
PhP20 for students, senior citizens and Marikina residents
PhP40 for tourists and visitors

Butterfly Garden
Rainforest Park, Pasig City
Metro Manila, Philippines

Butterfly Farm at Bio Research
Sucat Road, Paranaque

Butterfly Farms Outside Metro Manila:

Butterfly Garden, PACEM Ecology Park
Center for Peace and Ecology
Assumption Antipolo
Sumulong Highway, Antipolo City
Website: http://www.pacem-ecopark.org/
Tel. No.: +63.2.696.3274; +63.2.697.2354
Open From Monday to Friday, from 8.00am to 3.30pm
On Saturdays from 8.30am to 12.00noon
Remarks: includes a mini zoo, herbal garden, and museum of seashells

Butterfly Farm at Paradise Ranch Clark
Sacobia Valley,
Clarkfield, Pampanga
Tel. No.: +63.45.625.6696; +63.45.625.6698; +63.45.-889.8245 (up to 48)

Camp John Hay Butterfly Sanctuary
Little Mermaid Garden
Ordonio Drive, Baguio City, Philippines
Website: http://www.campjohnhay.com

Pulilan Butterfly Haven
Pulilan, Bulacan, Philippines
Website: http://www.pulilanbutterfly.ph
http://www.webmaxphil.com/pbh/index.htm

Dioko Resort and Butterfly Farm
Brgy. San Joaquin, San Pablo City, Laguna, Philippines
Email: diokoresbfly@hotmail.com
Tel. No.: +63.49.800.4542; +63.49.800.4543

The Butterfly Farm
Island Cove Resort and Leisure Park
Binakayan, Kawit, Cavite, Philippines
Website: http://www.islandcovephil.com

Butterfly Kingdom
inside the Paradise Ranch, Clark, Pampanga

Butterfly Garden at Camp John Hay
P40 entrance fee

Butterfly Garden, Subic Bay
near Zoobic Safari
Entrance Fee: P50

Flora Farm(Butterfly House)
Ilanin Forest, Subic Bay Freeport Zone, sell live butterflies
Cel number: 09088728656
09087308269
09062592318
email: beth_heitzmann@yahoo.com

Butterfly Garden
Paradizoo, Tagaytay City

LAG Butterfly Farm and Garden
Elm St, Greenwoods Subd, Batangas City, Batangas
Tel. No.: +63.43.722.2771
Website: http://www.philippinebutterfly.com

LAG Butterfly Farm and Garden
Gasan, Marinduque
Website: http://www.philippinebutterfly.com

Butterflies of Marinduque
Pangi, Gasan, Marinduque, Philippines
Website: http://butterfliesofmarinduque.com

Palawan Butterfly Garden
Puerto Princessa City, Palawan, Philippines

Boracay Butterfly Garden
Bolabog Beach, Boracay Island
5608 Malay, Aklan, Philippines
Tel: +63.36.288.6701
Mobile: +63.918.329.4233; +63.917.464.6486
Email: boracaybutterfly@yahoo.com
Website: http://bbg.boracayinfo.net

Butterfly Farm
Sagbayan, Bohol

Simply Butterflies Conservation Center
Poblacion, Bilar, Bohol, Philippines
Tel. No.: +63.38.535.9400 (globelines)
Mobile Number: 0928-5499-744
Website: http://simplybutterfliesproject.com
Remarks: This is a highly recommended visit for true blue butterfly enthusiasts being an open garden i.e. without the enclosures of most butterfly farms thereby attracting even rare, high-flying butterfly species.

Exotic Butterfly Philippines
Taculing, Bacolod City, Negros Occidental, Philippines
Website: http://www.exotic-butterfly.buildtolearn.net/

Bandilaan Butterfly Farm
Siquijor, Negros Oriental, Philippines
Mount Bandilaan National Park
Remark: under Julian Jumalon Foundation

WHS Butterfly Farm
Barangay Pangi, 4 kilometers north of the town of Gasan, Marinduque, Philippines
Website: http://www.marinduque-butterfly.com

Island Butterflies Farm
Cawit, Boac, Marinduque, Philippines
Email: island_butterflies@yahoo.com
Website: http://www.freewebs.com/island_butterflies/

Grand Villa Resort and Butterfly Farm
Purok 2 Brgy. Tranca, Bay, Laguna, Philippines
Directions: It is that road from the high way leading to Sto. Tomas, Batangas, after the rail road

Paru Parong Bukid Conservation Center
Brgy. Lukay, Babatngon, Leyte
owned by Doc Gil Asoy

Mindanao Butterfly Farms:

Butterfly House and Farm
Davao RiverFront Corporate City
Diversion Road, Ma-a, Davao City

Butterfly Far
Holcim Philippines
Lugait, Misamis Oriental

Butterfly Sanctuary
Malagos Garden Resort
Malagos, Baguio District, Calinan, Davao City, Philippines
Website: http://www.malagos.com

Hardin Maria Clara Lobregat
Pasonanca Park, Zamboanga City

Jumalon Butterfly Sanctuary
Cebu. An open garden sanctuary by Julian Jumalon, a butterfly expert (lepidopterist)

Unconfirmed: Hacienda Escudero, Tagaytay, Subic,

UPDATED: April 2011

Sources:
official websites, Kay Susan Tayo and postings from paro-parozzi yahoogroups (join this yahoogroups if you're also interested in watching butterflies in their natural habitat, name came from paru-paro, the Filipino word for butterflies (蝴蝶 in Chinese, 蝶 in Japanese , 나비 in Korean, papillon in French, Schmetterling in German, farfalla in Italian and mariposa in Spanish)

COMING SOON:

Tutubi Butterfly Garden
...have a feeling butterflies and dragonflies don't go well together :P
plus more butterfly pictures and trivia on later posts

Labels: Butterflies, Butterfly Garden, Butterfly Watching

Flower pictures and exotic butterfly at Jardin Maria Clara L. Lobregat in Pasonanca Park, Zamboanga City where flowers are in bloom and a butterfly farm is also located

the sign in front of the garden
the gumamela, or hibiscus, incidentally, is the national flower of Malaysia
a lantana, common in exotic butterfly gardens as source of nectar

a black butterfly called Common Mormon (not sure though, have to confirm with local butterfly watching enthusiasts)

Note: Entrance fee to park and the butterfly garden: Free!

All photos taken using Canon 300D either with kit lens or 50mm...

Labels: Butterfly Garden, Flowers, Parks, Zamboanga City, Zamboanga Peninsula

Was able to visit Marikina World of Butterflies some time ago with J, a Marikina denizen, as guide.

Butterflies, a cousin of Tutubi (dragonfly) in the insect world represent the most beautiful members of the Insect kingdom. (Dragonflies are the most handsome, hands down, this is Tutubi's blog, remember?)

Some pictures:


picture chrysalis hanging on a girdle (resting stage of moths is called cocoon, chrysalis for butterflies)
photo of a larva (caterpillar) on a host plant
the giant Mariposa (a moth, Scientific Name: Atticus Atlas)


No pictures of fluttering butterflies since they're mostly flying in the morning, not in the afternoon and evening, like moths do.

Will post butterfly pictures in an upcoming series on butterfly watching! :P

Information:

Marikina World of Butterflies
Mondays to Sundays 8am to 5pm
Champagnat corner Ordonez Sts
Brgy. Marikina Heights, Marikina City
Telephone No.: 9413747

P20 for students, senior citizens and Marikina residents
P40 for tourists and visitors

How to go to Marikina World of Butterflies:

Commute: Board a Marikina-bound FX on Aurora Blvd in Cubao, Quezon City, drop off at Meralco then hire a tricycle.



Directions to Marikina World of Butterflies

UPDATE: April 2011: this facility was hit by typhoon Ondoy where most of the butterflies died. probably not in good condition up to this time

Labels: Butterflies, Butterfly Garden, Marikina, Metro Manila, National Capital Region