Meet Sammilan Shetty, the butterfly-man of Karnataka

Sandhya D'Souza | coastaldigest.com
June 24, 2018

It was a regular Zoology assignment in 2004 that triggered the sudden interest of then student Sammilan Shetty towards butterflies. Fourteen-years since, having quit his fulltime-lectureship post, this 32-year-old has been successfully running Karnataka’s first private butterfly park in coastal district of Dakshina Kannada since 2011.

At the foothills of Western Ghats in Belvai village of Moodbidri taluk, a host of ordinary-looking plants and trees welcome the guests to 'Sammilan Shetty's Butterfly Park'. While walking through the 200 metre stretch of trees like coconut, mango, cashew or curry leaf plants, visitors are asked to delicately examine the top and bottom of these leaves, some of which are nature’s bed for butterfly eggs, larvae, caterpillar, dried shells and so on.

"You don’t need exotic plantation to host butterflies. Regular saplings or even wild plants that you can find in your home backyard would do. But unfortunately, most people uproot them terming it as a weed (unwanted plants). Even my family, was initially reluctant of my passion because I planted them," Shetty says.

Prior to the walk around the butterfly park, the visitors are familiarized with a few names and behaviour-pattern of the butterflies through audio-visual material, so that they can relate the same during their actual encounter with the species in the wild. A 30-minute walk-through this park gives a unique opportunity for the visitors to see the transformation from egg to caterpillar-pupa and the adult butterfly emerging out of it.

While the 'host-plant' is where the butterflies lay their eggs, the male milkweed butterflies suck alkaloid from alkaloid rich plants. "Alkaloids are essential for male milkweed butterflies to attract their female counterparts. Lower the alkaloid, the male butterflies might fail to impress their prospective female-mates," he says.

At this ancestral property spreading over 7.35 acres of semi-forest land, interesting species like, Autumn Leaf (Doleschallia bisaltide), Clipper (Parthenos sylvia),  Tawny Rajah (Charaxes psaphon), Black Rajah (Charaxes solon), Paris Peacock (Papilio paris), Redspot Duke (Dophla evelina), Blue Oakleaf(Kallima horsfieldii), Colour Sergeant (Athyma inara), which are otherwise uncommon, frequent at this open-private conservatory.

For the purpose of the identification of butterflies, Shetty uses The Book of Indian Butterflies by Isaac Kehimkar, whom he considers as his inspiration. Incidentally, the park was also publically opened in 2013 by Isaac - popularly known as the 'Butterfly man of India'.

"Rare butterflies like Blue Nawab (Polyura Schreiber), Orchid Tit (Chliaria othona), Great Evening Brown (Melanitis zitenius), Aberrant Oakblue (Arhopala abseus), Banded Royal (Rachana jalindra) Tamil Oakblue (Arhopala bazaloides) have also been recorded here," Shetty says.  Besides, we have species endemic to Western Ghats like Southern Duffer (Discophora lepida),  Tamil lacewing (Cethosia Nietneri), Malabar Banded Swallowtail( Papilio liomedon), Malabar Banded Peacock (Papilio buddha), a common sight during the season.

Back in 2004, while pursuing his graduation studies for Zoology, Sammilan documented 30 butterflies in the region for his project on the 'Study of local butterflies'. At present the open-house conservatory houses nearly 148 butterflies including rare and indigenous species. This is close to 50 per cent (339) of the species that is found in Western-Ghats. Shetty is particular of keeping the park without closed dome or enclosures, which he says traps them. "We have developed the park by propagating natural greenery with 'native host plants' and nectar plants which attracts butterflies to these parks. We have only created a conducive condition for them and respect the butterfly's freedom to stay or to go," he says.

London based World Book of Records has proposed to honour Shetty in recognition for his conservation of butterflies. Halpe Porus is the latest addition as the 148th butterfly at this park, which incidentally was spotted during course of this interview-walk.

Altogether there are 1,200 species of butterflies in the country, and approximately 320 in Karnataka. "Though the pollination by the butterflies is essential for food chain, no much study is gathered in India over it. Although Indian Foundation for Butterflies (IFB) is leading the way, it may take another 10 years for us to asses if we are truly accommodating the butterflies in our eco system," he says.

While the massive urbanisation and real-estate ventures targeting the secondary-forests, Shetty says, it has led to the decline of wildlife including butterflies due to their habitat loss.

While Maharashtra has taken ‘Blue Mormon’ as its state butterfly in 2015 and Karnataka has declared 'Southern Bird Wing' as its state butterfly in 2017, the butterfly enthusiasts are now batting to have recognition for a national butterfly. Butterfly-conservators feel that the move would not only help in creation of awareness of Butterfly in general, but also in conservation of their population.

The park which is completely funded by the family of Shetty, attracts approximately 800 visitors during the season between June and December. In the process of documenting the butterflies, Shetty has also taken to photography of which he plans to turn into a documentary. "A lot of people have changed the way they look at butterfly, after the educational tour. The idea is to take the message of butterfly conservation and its contribution for crop-cultivation (pollination) to as many people as possible in simple language" he says.

Comments

MK Lobo, Dubai
 - 
Sunday, 24 Jun 2018

Beautiful. Great job by Mr Shetty. Will visit during my next India visit

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News Network
November 10,2024

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Mangaluru: A heart-wrenching tragedy unfolded in the quiet Bellayuru village on the outskirts of Mangaluru as a man’s life ended on a railway track following an apparent double murder. Authorities from the Mulki police station identified the man as Karthik Bhat, 32, whose lifeless body was discovered on the tracks with his head positioned on the rail, indicating a tragic suicide.

Nearby, police recovered keys to a scooter and a house, which eventually led them to uncover a series of chilling events. Following the trail, officers located Bhat’s scooter parked near Mahammayi Temple. Inside the vehicle, they found documents confirming his identity, including an RC, insurance papers, and his driving license.

Their search continued to Bhat's home in Pakshikere, Kemral village, where they discovered a locked room. With the keys retrieved from the tracks, police unlocked the door, only to be confronted by a horrifying sight. The bodies of Priyanka (28) and her young son Hriday (4) lay in a pool of blood, pointing to a brutal murder that occurred just hours before Bhat’s suicide.

Initial investigations suggest Bhat, beleaguered by ongoing family disputes, committed the murders of his wife and son on the evening of November 8 before tragically ending his own life. A death note found in his diary hinted at his mental state and tragic intentions.

Priyanka’s family, residing in Shivamogga, was informed of the incident. The couple, married for six years, now leaves behind grieving relatives and unanswered questions. Police have initiated formal proceedings, collecting statements from family members as they continue their investigation into the tragic sequence of events.

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News Network
November 13,2024

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Bengaluru: An estimated overall 10.14 per cent voter turnout was recorded during the first two hours, since the voting began for bypolls to three Assembly segments in Karnataka on Wednesday, election officials said.

The voting began at 7 am and will go on till 6 pm.

More than seven lakh voters are eligible to cast their votes in about 770 polling stations in Shiggaon, Sandur and Channapatna, where a total of 45 candidates are in the fray.

While Channapatna recorded 10.34 per cent voter turnout till 9 am, it was 10.08 per cent in Shiggaon, and 9.99 per cent in Sandur, election officials said.

Voters, including women and elderly were seen queuing up in front of polling booths in these segments.

By-polls for Sandur, Shiggaon, and Channapatna are necessitated, as the seats fell vacant following the election of their respective representatives -- E Tukaram of Congress, former CM Basavaraj Bommai of BJP, and Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy of JD(S) -- to Lok Sabha in May elections.

As many as 31 candidates are in the fray from Channapatna, while Sandur and Shiggaon have six and eight contenders, respectively.

Elaborate security arrangements have been made in the three segments for the smooth conduct of the polls.

The by-polls will witness a straight fight between the ruling Congress and BJP in Sandur and Shiggaon segments, while in Channapatna, JD(S) which is part of the NDA alliance is in contest against the grand old party.

Among the three segments, Channapatna is considered to be a "high profile", where the contest is between C P Yogeeshwara, a five time MLA from the segment and former Minister, who joined the Congress quitting BJP ahead of nomination, and actor-turned -politician Nikhil Kumaraswamy, who is Kumaraswamy’s son and former PM H D Deve Gowda's grandson.

BJP's Bharath Bommai, son of Basavaraj Bommai, is fighting Congress Yasir Ahmed Khan Pathan, who had faced defeat against the former Chief Minister in the 2023 Assembly polls, in Shiggaon.

Bharath Bommai and his father cast their vote at a polling booth in Shiggaon segment.

In Sandur, Bellary MP Tukaram's wife E Annapurna of Congress is contesting from the seat vacated by her husband, against, BJP ST Morcha president Bangaru Hanumanthu, who is considered close to party leader and former mining barron G Janardhan Reddy.

Annapurna, Tukaram and other family members cast their votes at a booth in the segment.

With Nikhil Kumaraswamy and Bharath Bommai contesting, the third generation of Gowda and Bommai families are in the fray in this by-poll. Both their fathers and grandfathers have served as Karnataka's Chief Ministers in the past.

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News Network
November 15,2024

Udupi: The Tourism Department is planning a major eco-friendly development initiative for Kamini Island, located near the Blue Flag-certified Padubidri End Point beach, aiming to attract more visitors while maintaining environmental sustainability.

Assistant Director Kumar CU emphasized that, given the island’s proximity to the Blue Flag beach, all development efforts will center around eco-friendly practices. “We are looking to enhance the Kamini River and the island’s surroundings by adding a hanging bridge, nature trails, and eco-friendly food courts offering traditional cuisine. Visitors will also be able to reach the island by pedal boats or kayaking,” he said.

The development project is estimated to cost between Rs 3 crore and Rs 4 crore. Meanwhile, the Blue Flag beach, Padubidri, continues to see a steady flow of visitors. Vijay Shetty, manager of the beach, shared that tenders for food courts and water sports have been awarded to private parties. Recently, three new coracles have been introduced, which are proving to be a hit with visitors. Additionally, three more shelters are expected to be ready by November 20.

Shetty mentioned that the beach can now accommodate between 2,500 and 3,000 visitors daily, although footfall remains lower than other district beaches due to user fees and activity restrictions. “Initially, most visitors were from Mangaluru, but now nearly 40% come from other districts, showing a shift in the visitor demographics,” Shetty noted.

To further boost tourism and promote a healthy lifestyle, a Beach Carnival is set to take place on November 23-24, featuring the National Sea Swimming Championship and a sea marathon in collaboration with the Padubidri JCI, which is celebrating its golden jubilee. Cultural events will be held at the main beach, with some sports events taking place at the Blue Flag beach. Emphasis will be placed on making all activities environmentally friendly.

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