China's ecological success behind 150 million butterflies

(ECNS) -- This June, a natural wonder unfolded in Yunnan Province as about 150 million Stichophthalma howqua butterflies emerged within a single week, cascading down forested slopes like a golden waterfall.

Honghe Butterfly Valley recorded its largest "butterfly outbreak" in a decade, with one plot alone counting more than 100 million individuals.

The species produces only one generation per year, with females laying 80 to 120 eggs. Its unique life cycle includes two dormancy periods — in summer and winter — aligning development so that emergence occurs in a compressed window in late May to early June.

But biology alone does not explain the scale of this event.

For centuries, local communities in the valley have maintained traditional practices: never capturing or disturbing butterflies, treating them with deep reverence. This indigenous ecological wisdom — rooted in the Chinese philosophical concept of harmony between heaven and humanity — has been passed down through generations.

Since 2012, this traditional ethic has been reinforced by modern law. The local government enacted China's first conservation regulation specifically targeting a butterfly species.

The regulation bans logging of host trees, poaching, and indiscriminate development in core protected areas. Ecological restoration efforts have included planting 80,000 host plants and restoring 60 acres of degraded butterfly habitat.

As a result, larval survival rates increased from 50% to 85%, and butterfly populations have grown by an average of 10% annually over the past decade.

Butterflies are considered indicator species, sensitive to temperature, humidity and vegetation. Local experts say the 150-million count represents a "perfect score" for the ecosystem, signaling optimal forest coverage, plant diversity and microclimate conditions.

Globally, butterfly populations have declined over the past two decades due to habitat loss, pesticides and climate change. Yet in Honghe Valley, numbers have not only stabilized but surged. The success stems from three layers of protection: traditional reverence, legal enforcement and ecological restoration. Villagers now serve as butterfly guardians and eco-tourism guides, while schools teach conservation as part of local heritage.

When 150 million butterflies take to the air in unison, they are not just performing a biological marvel.

(By Tang Yuxian)