Butterflies are excellent pollinators, a vital marker of their ecosystem’s health, and an unexpendable part of the food pyramid. But when we ask BNHS education officer Priyadarshini Supekar why she has an eye on the butterflies of Mumbai, her answer is simple — “When I see a hundred butterflies fluttering around me, it makes me happy inside.” You can’t possibly contest that. At the Butterfly Festival this weekend, Mumbaikars will have the opportunity to experience this spectacle up close.

Striped tiger butterflies spotted at the BNHS CEC in Goregaon. PICS COURTESY/BNHS CEC