¡®¡¯Simply Butterflies Conservation Center¡¯¡¯

Simply Butterflies Conservation Center is located in Bilar, and has a visitors center

where people can observe hundreds of species of butterflies.

The center not only has butterflies on display, but also breeds them for sale,

and planned release in the environment, following internationally accepted standards for conservation.

The Conservation Center harbors a Butterfly Garden, a colorful landscaped garden full of flowering plants and of course, butterflies. Our guide said that more than 60 species of butterflies come to the garden.

There was also a Butterfly Enclosure. It was a part of the garden covered with nets. Inside were more butterflies just flying around, playing, feeding and breeding. They said that over 20 species of local butterflies were inside.

Simply Butterflies is founded on butterfly conservation principles. To protect and strengthen the natural environment of the butterflies, through plant research, breeding and releasing.  Bohol, like much of the Philippines, has a great diversity of butterflies. But they have been becoming more rare each year. The center is helping to raise the butterfly population, and bring money into the local economy while doing so. We are the first to start a butterfly livelihood breeding and conservation program in Bohol.

Butterfly Cycle

Filipinos have long held the belief that butterflies injure and even kill people. We have adopted The International Union of Conservation (IUCN) idea called ¡°Conservation Through Development¡±. With a financial incentive tightly linked to conservation and livelihood development opportunities; our sub breeder¡¯s returns offer an incentive to work and help with the wildlife and environment as the survival of the butterfly population is closely tied to their income.

By educating the people and sharing knowledge of how to breed butterflies, the center has built a community of paid breeders in an area with serious lack of employment and income. These breeders work together with the center to ensure butterflies used at the center or the butterfly products that are exported from the island are made from sustainable hand bred sources, not captured from the wild causing damage to the butterfly population.

The center also increases the area's butterfly population by releasing a calculated large number of hand bred butterflies into the wild, only using the surplus for making products to sell.