PHILIPPINES: MANILA: FIRST BUTTERFLY FARM OPENS

English/Nat The Philippines first butterfly farm showcasing up to 500 butterflies, including species unique to the Philippines, is due to open in Manila at the weekend. It will house butterflies caught by collectors as well as those specially bred on the farm and aims to raise awareness about preservation of the butterfly population in the wild. French butterfly collector Thierry Heitzmann and his Filipina wife Elizabeth are preparing for the big event- the official opening of the Philippines first butterfly farm. "The Butterfly House" in suburban Quezon City is actually a 150 square metre butterfly farm. It showcases a live butterfly exhibit, featuring some 500 colourful captive and bred butterflies in the enclosed garden. Among the 14 Philippine species found here are this albino Papilio Romanzovia and the Papilio Palinurus which collectors say is hard to find because of its green colour. The Heitzmanns have been exporting Philippine butterflies for the last five years. They say it's about time that Filipinos themselves see what the others have been enjoying for years. SOUNDBITE: (English) "Almost everybody in the world, in the developed world, is seeing Filipino butterflies, so we were wondering why the Filipinos cannot see their own butterflies." SUPER CAPTION: Thierry Heitzmann, Vice President, Butterfly House Incorporated Apart from the enclosed garden, the farm will allow its visitors to witness the insects' metamorphosis from pupa to adult. On one side of the farm, are boards with rows of pupae delicately hanging from pins. On the other are branches with the eggs laid by the mature butterflies. SOUNDBITE: (English) "Our purpose is mainly to educate the young ones as well as the old ones to appreciate nature, to encourage conservation, to be careful (of) our environment, to take care of our environment so that we can maintain the butterfly population." SUPERCAPTION: Elizabeth Heitzmann, Treasurer, Butterfly House Incorporated Compared to butterfly houses in Europe, this one is just about half the size but the Heitzmanns say the space provided is plenty big enough for the butterflies to breed - the main aim of any farm. And it means the public can get really close to the butterflies- at all stages of their reproductive cycle. SOUNDBITE: (English) "Butterflies (do not) need that big a space to fly. What they want is that they get the right foundation, the right treatment, that we leave them just as they are - in peace, and just playing around. They don't need anything else. Actually they are very much domestic. They are willing to be trained with humans. They don't repel humans. They are very much willing to play with them, to sit with them, it's an enjoyment for them, it's an enjoyment for us." SUPERCAPTION: Thierry Heitzmann, Vice President, Butterfly House Incorporated From this weekend ten pesos (U-S 50 cents) will be the entrance fee for the public to enjoy the magical world of the Butterfly House. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/94586820de3a4ad4ee0d23cac9f3ff57 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork