Neha Patil (Editor)

Butterfly watching

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Butterfly watching (also called butterflying) is a hobby concerned with the observation and study of butterflies. It also includes the "catch and release" of butterflies. There are clubs, handbooks, checklists, and festivals devoted to the activity.

Contents

The Canada Day and Fourth of July annual butterfly count, a census of species by butterfly watchers throughout North America, is an example of citizen science.

Equipment used

  • Low-power binoculars (7x35, for example)
  • A butterfly field guide. Not all butterflies are readily identifiable from color photographs. The skippers, for example, are best identified from set specimens.
  • A camera (optional)

    • Locations

    Well-known butterfly-watching areas include Costa Rica, the Amazon Basin, and sub-Saharan Africa.

    Counting butterflies

    Projects in Sweden, the United Kingdom, Finland, the Netherlands and other countries provide a framework for reporting butterfly sightings in an attempt to understand better what factors threaten or favor European butterflies.

    References

    Butterfly watching Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA