Hundreds of Danaine butterflies, also known as milkweed butterflies, have been tagged by a group of butterfly enthusiasts in Wayanad to track their migratory movement towards the eastern side of south India from the Western Ghats.
FERNS, a nature conservation society in Wayanad, has launched the programme as a part of a citizen science programme ‘Danaine Watch’ .
Every year, millions of Danaine butterflies undertake the journey in South India. Six species of milkweed butterflies have been found in the migratory swarms. It is believed that they fly from the Western Ghats to the Eastern Ghats and eastern plains during March and April, before the southwest monsoon.
