Malabar Tree Nymph has been given the status as state butterfly of Goa
Gomantak Times
Malabar Tree Nymph has been given the status as state butterfly of Goa, announced Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday, December 16.
Goa has become the 8th state in the country to declare its 'state butterfly'.
"Goa is not just about the sun, sand and sea, but is also known for the hinterland tourism. Today we have declared Malabar Tree Nymph as state butterfly," Sawant said at the inauguration of the 5th edition of Bird Festival of Goa.
Malabar Tree Nymph is a large butterfly having a wingspan of 120-154mm, appears mostly in white colour with black markings. It belongs to the danaid group of the family Nymphalidae.
Malabar Tree Nymph is endemic to the Western Ghats and often seen in small groups over streams and pathways. Though found in Southern Maharashtra, its real distribution starts in Goa and is found mainly in the areas of swamp vegetation of Ajobachi Tali, Bibtyan, NiranKarachi Rai in Sattari and Bhat, Savari in Sanguem. It also falls under the near threatened category of IUCN.
Earlier, four other species - Commander, Clipper, Common Jezebel and Blue Oakleaf were in the race to become state butterfly.
Maharashtra (Blue Mormon), Uttarakhand (Common Peacock), Karnataka (Southern Birdwings), Kerala (Malabar Banded Peacock), Tamil Nadu (Tamil Yeoman) and Arunachal Pradesh (Kaisar-i-hind) are the other seven states to have state butterfly.