At the Butterfly House, you temporarily forget the passing of time upon entering the garden aflutter with various species of these diurnal insects. Seeing these creatures flying to and fro, crossing your path, hovering above your head, and barely brushing your arms with their wings as they fly past you is an experience worth having even once in your life. It’s like a living museum where you get to interact, see and feel the "display," which could easily be one of nature’s masterpieces. Black wings with white spots, black dots on white, browns with bright yellow lines... all sorts of wing patterns are there for all to see.
According to owner Elizabeth Lumauig-Heitzmann, the 800 sq.m. Butterfly House is home to as much as 600 butterflies belonging to 16 or so species during the peak season. At the moment, though, there are only about 50 residents (from 10 butterfly species) as the House is onto its second lean month, which doesn’t end until after July. Obviously, these gentle creatures wilt under the excessive summer heat. With temperature rising to a high of 35 degrees these days, the poor butterflies are probably missing their days spent inside their cool, dark cocoons. However, thanks to the thick foliage and flowering plants that both Elizabeth and her husband Thierry planted in the 600 sq.m. garden-cum-flying area, the metropolis’ smog doesn’t pose much of a problem for the butterflies.
Being devoted lepidopterists, the Heitzmanns are deeply into the propagation of butterflies since they met in 1980. For the past 45 years or so, Elizabeth’s family has been engaged in the butterfly business, selling preserved butterflies to collectors the world over. Her dad, Romeo Lumauig, is an avid butterfly collector and is said to have collected about 1,500 species from all over the country. In fact, he has discovered several butterfly species, which he named after his family – the Charana Lumauig he named after his family; the Jacon gertrudes and Paruparo gertrudesae species after his wife; Terinos romero after himself; and Atrophaneura semperi lizae after Elizabeth.
When French collector Thierry visited the Lumauigs’ home in Boac, Marinduque to buy some samples, he met Elizabeth and his heart began to flutter like a butterfly. It was a match made in butterfly heaven. "I love butterflies so much that I left my law studies," says Elizabeth, who took up Biology in San Beda.
The original Butterfly House was located at the Elliptical Road near Quezon Avenue in Quezon City but transferred to its present address inside the Manila Seedling Bank Compound, Quezon Avenue corner EDSA, after the Lung Center decided to retrieve the Elliptical Road lot, which used to be leased out to plant and garden stores. With a bigger location, the Heitzmanns were given more elbow room to improve the place.
But it wasn’t as easy as they thought. Elizabeth admits that it’s not a breeze maintaining a butterfly garden. It’s not so much the raising of butterflies, which the Heitzmanns are experts in, but the nitty gritty of running a business. What frustrates the Heitzmanns more is not really the economics aspect, but of the seemingly indifferent attitude of the people about the importance of butterflies as a whole. "A lot of people don’t appreciate these beautiful creatures either because they’re not aware or they don’t just give a hoot," she laments. Like other players in the ecological system, butterflies are barometers of sorts of how this planet is doing in terms of ecological preservation. Take out the butterflies in the equation and every living thing on earth is faced with eventual extinction. If we fail to save the butterflies, like we fail to save the tougher, bigger creatures, then we might as well say goodbye to the world as we know it.
This is probably the reason why, despite the difficulty of maintaining the place, the Heitzmanns are bent on giving the butterflies a home. Plant lovers as well, Elizabeth and Thierry designed the garden themselves, planting it to lantana, santan, star cluster flowers, hibiscus, pseudoranthemum, orchids, as well as ferns and palm plants. For only P50 a person, you can stay in the garden for as long as you want, observing the butterflies weave in and out of the leaves, gently settling on flowers, or feeding on flat dishes filled with water and sugar or honey. The garden is covered with green netting (you wouldn’t want the butterflies to escape and choke on the city’s poisonous gases, would you now?) and the plants are regularly watered to cool the place down, especially during the hot summer months. The pathway is disabled friendly, and wheelchair-bound visitors can easily move through the garden. Group tours are also popular especially for students.
Elizabeth also believes in the therapeutic powers of butterflies. On a regular basis, she invites young cancer patients over to be with the butterflies. And she notes a more cheerful countenance, much brighter smiles in the kids at the end of the day. "Everybody is welcome to stay as long as they don’t harm the butterflies and destroy the plants," she says. Past experience, unfortunately, had the Heitzmanns dealing with a crushed butterfly, picked flowers and damaged plants no thanks to insensitive people. The couple also try to keep the garden free from the butterflies’ enemies – lizards, ants, mice, spiders, bees, roaches, and yes, even the unbearable tropical heat.
The great thing about butterflies is that they are not intimidated by the presence of people (which, if you think about it, could also be the reason why they are easy targets) and would go on happily collecting their nectar, oblivious to the world around them. Keeping deathly still could attract a couple of butterflies and make them perch on your outstretched hand or arm, but you could wait for hours if you do that. Unless you emit a honey-like smell, you’ll be generally ignored. But the Heitzmanns have discovered a quicker way to have a close encounter with the butterflies. Applying a certain gel on their hair, arms and hands (even on their clothes) will have the lovely critters flocking towards you in no time.
"One visitor ended up with a crown of butterflies on his head, while another had to ask our help to get rid of the butterflies, obviously attracted by a perfume she wore, from her whole leg," relates Elizabeth, who willingly showed us the effect of the gel on the butterflies. Together with daughter Audrey, they applied the gel and soon enough, the butterflies alighted on their hair and arms. Little Audrey, at some point, looked like she was wearing flowers on her hair, and sporting a butterfly design on her bare arm. It was a very pretty sight.
Contrary to popular notion, being in contact with butterflies doesn’t cause allergic reactions. According to Elizabeth, unlike the moth whose wings are powdery, butterflies’ wings are made of scales. And they don’t bite either.
The Heitzmanns are thinking of repainting a portion of the building and turning it into a mini-museum where mounted butterflies and a video of the stages of the insect’s life will be shown. "We want the whole place to look good where people can appreciate and learn from about butterflies," says Elizabeth whose Butterfly Garden Inc. is also operating (along with partner Freeport Subic Corporation) the Butterfly Garden II at the Forest Adventure Park of the Subic Bay Freeport Zone in Olongapo City. At the moment, all that room could offer is a few samples of live insects like the walking stick and leaf insects (unless you look closer, these creatures really do look like sticks and leaves at a glance), as well as a grasshopper all by his lonesome, and who’s probably humming that famous Pinocchio ditty When You Wish...
Remember how butterflies are often associated with changes and are said to be the archetypal symbols of transformation or transition? The chrysalis stage of a butterfly could look ugly, plain and drab with nothing to show except a brown, icky cocoon. But when the butterfly emerges from its hiding place, it’s the most beautiful creature anybody can encounter. In a way, despite some difficulties, the Butterfly House is probably undergoing a transformation of sorts. If all of the Heitzmanns’ plans push through, we might just see the Butterfly House emerging from its shell, unfurl its wings and finally take off with its spanking new image.