By YOICHI TSUBURA/ Staff Writer
December 12, 2022 at 16:09 JST
MOOKA, Tochigi Prefecture--A bird and butterfly greenhouse in Igashira Park here has decorated its annual Christmas tree with more than 100 chrysalises that naturally glitter in vivid hues of gold, silver and green.
“We would very much like visitors to see the beautiful, shimmering chrysalises,” said Ryohei Nishitate, the butterfly specialist responsible for the tree at the Kachou Yukan greenhouse.
The chrysalises adorning the tree are expected to hatch during the Christmas period, so lucky visitors might be able to see them emerge as butterflies.
But even if that is not possible, visitors can still see the butterflies they will become, including the paper kite butterfly, the striped blue crow and the Ceylon blue glassy tiger, fluttering around the tree.
The Okinawa prefectural government has designated the paper kite butterfly as “the prefecture’s butterfly.”
Greenhouse staff said the chrysalises adopt their gorgeous colors as a survival mechanism.
The paper kite butterfly’s chrysalises take on a golden color to send a warning to birds that they are not safe to eat, while the striped blue crow’s silver chrysalises camouflage them with their natural surroundings to evade predators.
Kachou Yukan makes a tree like this every winter to show off plants or butterflies from different climates.
The 2-meter-tall “golden chrysalis tree” will be on display at Kachou Yukan until Dec. 25.
The entrance fee is 440 yen ($3.20) for adults. It is closed on Tuesdays.
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Golden chrysalises of the paper kite butterfly decorate a Christmas tree at Kachou Yukan in Igashira Park, Mooka, Tochigi Prefecture, on Dec. 7. (Yoichi Tsubura)
