Butterfly farm - butterfly farm at home, cultivation, care

A homemade butterfly farm (also called a butterfly garden) is a memorable gift that will surprise a child and delight parents at an affordable price. Kids love to experiment and become their direct participants. Especially when it comes to observing living beings.

A real tropical fairy tale unfolds before the children - you can see with your own eyes the process of the appearance of a new butterfly. Those who are thinking not about a gift, but about a new business, should also consider breeding exotic insects. Investments pay off quickly, and the process is a great pleasure.

What is a tropical insect farm

Buy a ready-made butterfly garden or make it yourself? This question arises among parents who think how grow a butterfly at home. The farm is a compact box with transparent walls. Hanging inside are pupae grown in other countries, usually in the Philippines or Costa Rica.

With proper care, moths with colorful wings hatch in three weeks. If the insects do not appear, then the company where you purchased the kit will replace the pupae with new ones for free. Butterflies are hypoallergenic and healthy - before being imported into Russia, they undergo strict veterinary control.

The price of a home butterfly garden is affordable. A kit for growing butterflies costs from 1500 rubles. In addition to the farm and pupae, it usually includes detailed instructions from which you will learn how to care for insects.

How to grow exotic insects without special kits

A rearing farm is not the only option, although getting live butterflies without one the first time is much more difficult on your own. How to assemble an insect house? For 2-3 caterpillars, a regular four-liter jar covered with gauze will become a farm.

Insects need to bring fresh leaves daily. Their house is in dire need of cleaning. In dirty jars, there are frequent cases of mold, which is detrimental to small tenants. To make cleanup easier, put paper towels in the bottom of the jar - it takes a few minutes a day to replace them. Lower long sticks into a glass container and wait for the caterpillars to climb on them. Transplant the insects into a pre-prepared spare jar, and then clean out the house.

Before pupation, it is required to place the stick in the container. The caterpillar will attach to it and spend several months in limbo. Maintain high humidity inside the house - for this, use a spray bottle. Keep an eye on the chrysalis. You will see that shortly before the appearance of the butterfly, it will change color - it will become lighter or vice versa darker.

It will greatly facilitate the process of growing a butterfly not from a caterpillar, but from a chrysalis. Its cost is from 150 rubles.

At home, it is recommended to set up a garden for insects. Butterflies will love mint, parsley, dill, fennel, sage, and lavender.

How tropical insects are born

With proper care, the growth process takes about two to three weeks. When transformation pupae in moths is over, insects begin to secrete a special secret. Under its influence, cocoons split.

There should be enough space inside the container for the hatched insect to fully open its wings. A process that goes the wrong way is fraught with problems. The insect simply cannot fly.

The process of transformation from a chrysalis to a butterfly is a breathtaking sight. The head appears first, then the legs and body. After birth, she is immobile. You should not worry about this - the butterfly is waiting for the wings to dry out in order to spread them before the first flight.

How long do butterflies live at home? Butterflies from the tropics will delight you from 2 to 14 days - the life expectancy of insects depends on the species and proper care for them. In apartments, they are not threatened by predators, as in the wild, as well as a suitable temperature for growing butterflies (up to +30°WITH).

Home care

Tropical guests need timely feeding and moistening of the wings with a spray bottle of water at room temperature at a distance of 30 to 40 cm. Due to the low humidity in the room, the antennae and legs of insects break. Therefore, in addition to the atomizer, it is also recommended to use a humidifier.

Caring for butterflies hatched from pupae with your own hands is within the power of a child from six years old. Such a gift will surprise and delight children and younger children, but they will need the help of their parents. In order not to harm the insect and increase life expectancy, it is important to consider the following points:

Try to ventilate the room less often, avoid drafts and sudden changes in temperature.
When you leave the apartment, curtain the windows - the butterflies at home beat on the glass, which damages the wings.
A chandelier with an open shade is one of the main enemies of butterflies at home. Moths fly in, but they can't get back out.
Make sure that other pets do not harm tropical guests.

What to feed exotic insects

The basis of nutrition of butterflies in nature is nectar. A delicacy that will appeal to the inhabitants of the tropics, it is easy to cook on your own. To do this, sugar or honey is dissolved in water (in a ratio of 1 to 10). Feeding unusual pets is recommended once or twice a day.

Pour the sugar solution little by little - it is not uncommon for insects to slap their wings due to inaccuracy during meals and then hardly fly. The butterfly must be carefully planted on the edge of the saucer. If she refuses to treat, try to gently unwind her proboscis with a toothpick and direct it into the syrup. After the meal is over, the butterfly will fly away.

Insects, in addition to sugar syrup, like to feast on rotten fruits - apples, bananas, melons and oranges are suitable.

Butterfly farming business

Insects are bred not only for entertainment. It is not difficult to make money on an unusual hobby. Four options are common:

Sale of butterflies and pupae for home farms via the Internet. Make a website and fill it with information about the product. The cost of pupae starts from 150-200 rubles, depending on the type. The lot includes 15 insects. Consider packaging and shipping in advance.
Organization of exhibitions and photo shoots. Fireworks are often bought for events - insects are released from beautiful boxes at weddings and other holidays. The cost of the service is from 2 thousand rubles. To organize an exhibition, you need to rent a room with an area of 20 square meters, create suitable conditions in it and “populate” with several dozen exotic species. Tickets for such events are sold for 100-200 rubles.
Sale of dried insects. A framed butterfly costs from 450 rubles to 20 thousand - the price depends on the type. Everyone can master the design of souvenirs.
Butterfly rent for photo shoots. Photographers are willing to pay for the service from 500 rubles per hour.

Growing butterflies from pupae is not difficult. This is a fascinating process that captures both adults and children with equal force. Create the necessary conditions for insects, and then new exotic tenants will soon appear in your apartment.