BUTTERFLY FARMING operations are creating alternatives to farming and logging

Currently, many governments and conservation organizations are teaching people in rainforest areas how to raise insects for economic purposes versus industries that deplete rainforest, such as slash and burn agricultural farming or logging. Although this will not solve the rainforest crisis, it is a powerful conservation tool that provides an alternative to destructive farming or logging. With an area of rainforest the size of England disappearing each year, we have to utilize every tool that promotes conservation.

HOW DOES BUTTERFLY FARMING WORK?
On these farms, female butterflies, typically from captive-bred stock, are released to fly freely within large enclosed structures that house their required host plants. Either live pupae is collected to be shipped to flying butterfly displays or deceased butterflies are gathered for museums and specimen collectors. Because butterfly farming is absolutely dependent upon the native vegetation in surrounding rainforest, which acts as a constant supply of food for the butterfly larvae, local ranchers become protectors of the forest because it is a source of their livelihoods. By linking environmental stewardship and economic development, butterfly farming positively impacts threatened habitats as well as human well-being.

THE DIVERSITY OF INSECTS

Insects are the most diverse and successful group of animals to appear in the 3-billion-year history of life on Earth. Today, there are roughly one million described (named) species of insects and estimates range from three million to thirty million more waiting to be discovered. No other organism matches their ecological dominance, biomass or diversity.

Class Insecta is not only diverse in numbers, but it is also diverse in the variety of structures and behaviors that insects have to adapt to environmental challenges. These adaptations have given them a variety of camouflage, toxic defenses, colors, and songs. For this, insects deserve a closer look as they have insight into the complexity of our world, as well as a beauty that often goes unnoticed.

IMPORTANCE OF RAINFORESTS

Tropical rainforests are incredibly rich ecosystems that play a fundamental role in the basic functioning of the planet. They produce much of the world's oxygen, stabilize rainfall, and protect against desertification. Incredibly, they are also home to over 50% of the world's species, making them an extensive and important library of biological and genetic resources.

Interesting rainforest facts:

• More than 20 percent of the world's oxygen is produced in the Amazon Rainforest and one-fifth of the world's fresh water is in the Amazon Basin.
• One hectare (2.47 acres) may contain over 750 types of trees and 1,500 species of higher plants.
• At least 3,000 fruits are found in the rainforests; of these only 200 are now in use in the Western World. The Indians of the rainforest use over 2,000.
• Currently, 121 prescription drugs currently sold worldwide come from plant-derived sources. And while 25% of Western pharmaceuticals are derived from rainforest ingredients, less than 1% of these tropical trees and plants have been tested by scientists.
• The U.S. National Cancer Institute has identified 3000 plants that are active against cancer cells. 70% of these plants are found in the rainforest. Twenty-five percent of the active ingredients in today's cancer-fighting drugs come from organisms found only in the rainforest.

OUR DISAPPEARING RAINFORESTS

Rainforests once covered 14% of the earth's land surface but currently covers only 6% and experts estimate that the last remaining rainforests could be consumed in less than 40 years.

It is estimated that over 80,000 acres of forests disappear each day and another 80,000 acres becomes degraded. These numbers add up to an area the size of England disappearing each year.

As the rain forests disappear, the planet loses numerous species to extinction, the vast majority of which have never been documented by science. Additionally, when forests are cut down, carbon is added to the atmosphere which impact climactic conditions and leads to topsoil erosion.

Deforestation is the result of a combination of things: timber, farming and ranching. In a majority of tropical countries, poor subsistence farmers who are encouraged to settle forest lands by government land policies are the leading cause of forest decline. However, in the Brazilian Amazon, cattle ranching is the leading cause of deforestation.


So what can be done?