Greater measures taken to protect butterfly migration

This year, the butterflies are projected to arrive from mid-March to late April, with the peak period between March 22 and April 6, from approximately 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Coordinating with their arrival, the bureau will cordon off north-bound traffic from kilometers 250 to 253 on the outer lane of Taiwan's National Freeway No. 3, an expansion from kilometers 251 to 252 of last year.

The speed limit will be 60 kilometers an hour, but may go below 40, according to Hsu Cheng-chang, director of the Central Region Engineering Office of the National Expressway Bureau.

“With the slower traffic, the drivers might be able to see the butterflies and marvel at their beauty,” Hsu said.

Safety nets have been effective in raising the altitude of the butterflies' flight and prevent them from getting too close to motor vehicles. This year, the safety net length has been extended to 660 meters with a height of 4 meters.

The nets have already been stretched across the outer lane of Taiwan's National Freeway No. 3 from kilometer 252+100 to kilometer 251+440. 560 meters of nets line the bridge section while 100 meters cover the embankment.

Bureau officials also planted trees on the major flight corridors as another measure to force butterflies to reach a higher altitude before reaching the freeway.

The area where the trees were planted ranges from the hills along the north-bound traffic from kilometers 252 to 253, and on southward.

A total of 853 trees were planted and include olive kernel, camphor tree, betel Siberian elm, Wu Xinshi, earth cedar and Huang Xinshi.

In addition, a campaign to raise awareness of the butterflies' migration was launched by the bureau. It includes a Web site broadcasting the latest butterfly news, an activity that sends 14 yellow buses to cruise around with “Caution! Butterfly Crossing” stickers, and butterfly information services centers at the five federal highway stops of Xihu, Taian, Chingshui, Nantou and Gukung.

Yang Ping-shih, dean of the College of Agriculture at the National Taiwan University (NTU) urged caution at the unpredictability of the butterfly's path, potentially subjecting them to harm.

“The behavior of the butterflies in the east is very interesting. We initially thought that once they entered the east, they stayed there; however, from last year's reports, we discovered that they come and go,” he said.

Every year, after the Tomb Sweeping Festival, an estimated 40,000 butterflies migrate from the north to the south, covering nearly 400 kilometers.

In 2007, an estimated 3.0055 percent of the 40,000 butterflies were killed during their migration. The year before, the “roadkill rate” was 2 to 3 percent.

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