Trivia Answers on our Earth Day Campaign: Build You Own Butterfly Garden

, April 25, 2014

We are celebrating Earth Day for 10 days with our 10 Acts of Green. As our Act of Green #8, we shared some tips on how to create your own butterfly garden on our Facebook and Twitter page and a few trivia questions as well.

Time to find out the answers to our trivia questions and see if you won a D.I.Y Your Own Butterfly Garden Booklet!

1. What kind of plants provide butterflies with sweet nutritious fluid for drinking?

Answer: Nectar Plants

2. Does using pesticide good for your butterfly garden?

Answer: No. 

3. Where is Penang Butterfly Farm located?

Answer:  Teluk Bahang, Penang

4. Aside from Nectar, what do male butterflies of some species need for nutrients?

Answer: Minerals

5. Name one weekday activity with the Nature Specialists at Penang Butterfly Farm.

Answer: Nature Talk or Vita Nova

6. Are butterflies good indicator of a healthy environment? Why?

Answer: Yes, a high number of butterflies mean that there are a high number of food plants and nectar plants in the ecosystem that benefits not only the butterflies but other animals as well.

7. As part of a global movement, what is Penang Butterfly Farm celebrating on 22 April 2014?

Answer: Earth Day

8. Why are butterflies and bees important to us?

Answer: Butterflies and bees help in pollination.

Without them plants won’t be pollinated and we won’t have fruits and vegetables.

9. Give one example of a butterfly host plant from our tip posted in our Facebook page.

Answer: (either of the following)

Aristolochia tagala Plant or Lime Plant

10. What is the name of the national butterfly of Malaysia?

Answer: Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing or Trogonoptera brookiana

Did you manage to answer all 10 questions correctly? Head on to Penang Butterfly Farm to claim your prize!

 


Posted in Butterflies, Events & Workshops, Nature's Motivation |

Women who practice what they preach

, March 8, 2011

It’s the 8th of March, ladies! Look into the mirror and tell that woman you see, “Happy International Women’s Day, beautiful!” And to all gentlemen don’t forget to honour the woman around you especially today.

The nature has always been regarded as woman, for example how we call it “Mother Nature”. An unknown author was also quoted saying “A virgin forest is where the hand of man has never set foot.” Today hundreds of women from all over the world are making great impact to world as they speak out on behalf of Mother Nature. Women of different places, skin colour, and culture but speaks one same heart: the love for the Mother Nature. Let’s take a look at some of these ‘goddest of green’.

The daring good hearts from Hollywood:

• Daryl Hannah

Daryl Hannah

Daryl Hannah Protesting

This American actress isn’t just beautiful on the outside but shines her beauty through her deep love for the environment. She is one Hollywood bombshell who’s not afraid of being controversial or even getting jailed in her moves to spread environmental awareness. On June 13, 2006, Daryl was arrested, along with actor Taran Noah Smith, for her involvement with over 350 farmers, their families and supporters, confronting authorities trying to bulldoze the nation’s largest urban farm in Los Angeles. In the protest, she chained herself to a walnut tree at the South Central Farm for three weeks to protest the farmers’ eviction. She once drank biofuel to prove its safety and dipped her hands in the oil-contaminated water in Ecuador. This woman deserves respect! Check out her cool funky web: http://www.dhlovelife.com

• Janice Dickinson

Janice Dickinson

Janice is a supermodel who now owns her own modelling agency called The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency, which she documented into a reality show for a few seasons. On one occasion she invited Dan Matthew, a PETA VP to share to the models in her agency about the ugly truth behind obtaining animal fur for garments. She then challenges her models to involve themselves in a campaign against wearing animal fur.. On the event, Janice along with her models strutted down Hollywood Boulevard shouting the slogan “Rather go naked than wear fur” in their undies.

I'd rather go naked than wear fur

Local fame:

• Maya Karin (Malaysia)

Maya Karin

God blessed Malaysia with this beautiful celebrity, who has actively involved herself in local environmental campaigns (although not as whacky as Hollywood). She is an ally to WWF, Malaysian Nature Society, Ministry of Environs and the media. She was brought up by nature-loving parents and she grows into an influential celebrity with a green mission. She was appointed by the Ministry to be involved in creating awareness for the International Year of the Reef in 2008. She has also been actively campaigning Plastic Bag Recycling and supports the “Say No to Coal Plants in Sabah” campaign. We do need more of good seeds like Maya! More of Maya at http://www.mayakarin.com

For the love of trees:

• Julia Butterfly Hills


Julia is an American activist & environmentalist. She earns great respects from nature-lovers as she spent 738 days living on a tree. Like literally. On a tree. Julia lived on a 60×60 platform on a roughly 1500-year-old, 55m tall California Redwood Tree, which she affectionately named “Luna”. She did this in protest to the Pacific Lumber Company from logging it. She ascended the tree on December 10, 1997 and pledged to not leave until an agreement is made. Finally in 1999 the company agreed to preserve Luna and all the trees within 200 feet buffer zone, and in exchange, of course, Julia descended the tree. Her devotion has brought nationwide attention, spreading awareness of deforestation. Paul Donahue wrote about her in The Maine Woods publication entitling the article “The Butterfly Who Would Save a Giant”

Never too young:

• Bindi Irwin.

Bindi Irwin

Everyone knows Bindi’s famous late father, Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter. She starts appearing on TV shows as young as age 2. After the tragic death of her father, Bindi shines on the message of love for the nature. Bindi is a global ambassador for Wildlife Warriors Worldwide. She has also launched her own clothing line, called Bindi Wear, with 100% of the profits going to the Australia Zoo’s conservation programs. She has tried her hands at acting, singing, dancing, and rapping; all for the purpose of sending her conservationist philosophy. This year, she’s only 13. And she has done all that. (Shame on most of us)

Never too old:

• Sylvia Earle

Sylvia Earle

In 2010 Sylvia Earle may be a 74 years old Oceanologist, when the issue of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico happened, but that does not stop her from being directly involve in speaking out on behalf of the ocean regarding the disaster. She has been speaking out ocean conservation message for years, publishing books and conducting campaigns. Not sure if she ever thought of retiring. (Shame on us young people)

These women prove to us that you can be ordinary to do the extraordinary and speak out for our Mother Nature. Hope you’re inspired! 🙂
Once again Happy International Women’s Day!


Posted in Nature's Motivation |

Happiness in Nature

, January 2, 2010

Do you like reading poems? Here is one I wrote on mother nature…


When you watch the birds and touch the sky,
When you see the moving clouds and the swaying trees,
When you sit by the quiet lake and the fish within,
Did you smile, as I accompany you?

When you learn the language of bees,
When you feel the tickle of plants,
When you hear the sound of rivers,
Did you laugh, when I play with you?

When you chase the dragonflies to my waterfall,
When you pick the flowers from my garden,
When you wash your legs in my pond,
Did you feel happy when I spend time with you?

When you search the green grassy meadows,
When you sight the fanciful forests and mountains,
When you walk the beach and dive the oceans,
Did you travel very far just to look for me?

Hmm… perhaps, did you even know me at all?

Some quotes I like about butterflies, nature and happiness:

“Nature’s message was always there and for us to see. It was written on the wings of butterflies.”

“The butterfly counts not months but moments, and has time enough.”

“Happiness is like a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but, if you will sit down quietly, it may alight upon you.”

happiness


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Posted in Mother Nature, Nature's Motivation |

Happy New Year 2008! And My New Year’s Resolution Is…

, January 10, 2008

Happy New Year to all our loyal readers, visitors and friends!!! It’s 2008!

Will you be visiting us this year again? Have you made any resolution this year?

One of my resolution this year is simply to CHANGE! Now, why did I say change?

Most of us are probably at the same place, same habit, same thoughts, all the time.
Some of you are probably trying to find more happiness, more freedom or a greener pasture in life. But really, what does it take to achieve that?

Let’s look back at nature and take this as an example – a caterpillar. If a caterpillar feeds itself on leaves and grows, what will it become eventually? A Butterfly!
Why? That’s because the DNA of the butterfly is already in the caterpillar. With a little motivation, it turns itself into a chrysalis, and soon emerges a butterfly.

Now, what if you take that caterpillar away from its favourite leaves, and put it somewhere far from leaves (hope no one does that).
Will the caterpillar grow and turn into a chrysalis and then a butterfly? Obviously it won’t. In the wrong environment, it will always stay a caterpillar.

I’m trying to give you motivation that there is a huge potential within us waiting to emerge. But to be able to grow to that potential, you need to start making changes. I’m not talking about physical changes, but the change one has to make in one’s MENTAL environment in order to move forward.

Has anyone ever realised, the caterpillar could not have become a butterfly IF it DID NOT make a DECISION to start spinning into a pupae or chrysalis?
And I guess somehow nature is good at convincing every caterpillar to make that decision!

The point is everyone has to make a decision in order to change or see changes in their lives. I know, it is so often not comfortable to change, but it is always possible to change. And I’m thankful, that that possibility and decision can make a difference in my life and your life. And that’s a very powerful decision!

I hope this motivates you to set new goals or resolutions this year in order to see or experience or achieve whatever your dreams are.

“Yesterday was an abandoned dream, tomorrow is always a promise, but today there’s a gift in your hands – it’s the Power to CHANGE.”

I hope you make that decision to change as I am already making changes right now! Have a great 2008 and come back here often!


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Posted in Nature's Motivation |