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Trip Reports
Butterfly-watching Holidays
West Malaysia
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May 2009
a private small
group trip organised and led by
Adrian Hoskins
trip report by
Adrian Hoskins
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hill forest,
Bukit Tapah |
On day 4 we headed up to the cool forests of the Cameron
Highlands. Near Ringlet we found 2 very attractive Riodinids - the
pretty reddish Punchinello Zemeros flegyas,
and the delightful tailed species Abisara neophron. In clearings
and quarries we found several Long-tailed Blues
Lampides boeticus, and the lovely
silvery blue Caerulean Jamides celeno.
Prettiest of all however was the Purple Sapphire
Heliophorus epicles - a relative of
the Coppers, marked on the upper wings with purple and orange, and
with the underside bright yellow with red margins.
As we reached the higher altitudes of Tanah Rata temperatures
dropped and butterflies became much harder to find. At Robinson
Falls however we saw some interesting Satyrines including the
white-barred Lethe verma and several
of the attractive striped ringlets Ragadia
makuta.
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lowland
rainforest, Gopeng |
We spent the next 3 days based at Gopeng, taking daily excursions
into the surrounding hills. Most of the lower slopes were covered
in oil palm plantations where species diversity was expectedly
very low. Nevertheless the proximity to the rainforest meant that there were still many beautiful butterflies
to be found in the sunnier glades including the Yellow Glassy
Tiger Danaus aspasia, the Oriental
Short-tailed Blue Everes lacturnus,
and the stunning striped Silverline
Spindasis lohita.
The higher slopes have so far escaped the ravages of the oil palm
industry and retain natural forest cover, dotted with Orang Asli
settlements. We visited a small waterfall where a trio of Tree
Nymphs Idea lynceus entertained us.
These huge butterflies, like white handkerchiefs marked with black
polka dots, fluttered gently above our heads but never settled
close enough to permit photography. When seen in flight they are
extraordinarily graceful, and to watch them floating tantatisingly
around us was one of the highlights of our time at Gopeng.
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lowland
rainforest, Gopeng |
On our last day in the area we visited a Rafflesia conservation
area at Ulu Gerok. Butterflies were diverse and abundant but we
were saddened to discover that hundreds were being slaughtered
daily by the local Orang Asli women and children who had laid
dozens of crude traps along the forest trails. They used a sweet
sticky solution to attract the butterflies to the ground, and used
nets to catch all the Swallowtails and other brightly coloured
species that came within reach. Any butterfly which landed on the
ground however became trapped by the sticky bait which literally
glued their wings together. The area around each trap
was consequently littered with the damaged corpses of dozens of
species.
Miraculously the Orang Asli had failed to discover what was
without doubt one of the most amazing butterfly spectacles I have
ever seen - a massive group of over 100 pristine Rajah Brooke's
Birdwings Trogonoptera brookiana
settled on a small patch of ground on a quiet forest track. No
photograph, video clip or verbal description can begin to do
justice to the incredible beauty of these creatures, and to see
such a huge aggregation was a sight guaranteed to blow the mind of
the most experienced butterfly enthusiast. Try to imagine 100
butterflies, each measuring almost 8 inches across, a quivering
mass of shimmering iridescent green wings, packed together on a
patch of ground the size of a small dining table. Then try to
imagine the thrill of being so close that you could reach down and
touch them. After taking a few photographs you edge gently away
but the whole group erupts into flight, and you are surrounded by
a swirling mass of glittering green wings. You freeze on the spot,
hoping not to scare them away, and they respond by gliding closely
around you. Then one by one they resettle on the ground until they
encircle you. At first they nervously quiver and flutter, but
after a couple of minutes they all relax and spread their glorious
wings. You are mesmerised, and the huge privilege of such an
experience is something you never forget.
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Rajah Brooke's
Birdwing, Trogonoptera brookiana |
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