
The project to make Karanji Lake suitable for butterflies was formulated by the Mysore Zoo during 1999 by the then Zoo Executive Director

Flowering plants are carefully selected and grown in the park with the help of a botanist to attract butterflies. The specially cultivated plants here are Jatropha, Crotalaria, Augusta, Poinsettia, Lemon Tree, Murraya koenigii (Karibevu). Some of these plants have been brought from hill stations and other region also.
A wide variety of butterflies like Grey Pansy, Lemon Pansy, Peacock Pansy, Yellow Pansy, Tailed Jay, Blue Mormon, Common Mormon, Crimson Rose, Common emigrant, Tawny Coster, Blue tiger, Paint tiger, Striped tiger, Danid egg fly and many more are seen dotting the park. Red Pierrot with twin heads captivates the onlookers making them difficult to drag their eyes away from them.

Many species of adult butterfly live only for one or two weeks. Some familiar species like Monarch butterfly survive for six months or even longer in the wild. Since more swarms of butterflies are expected to migrate to the lake after the monsoon.
Butterflies are seen more in the month of April and May and from October to November.
[October 22, 2009]
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