Benalmadena Butterfly Park

The Mariposario de Benalmádena is the largest space in Europe dedicated to butterflies located in the city of Benalmádena (Málaga).2 It has 2,000 square metres and is promoted by the entity Imago Dracaena SL, owner of another butterfly farm and the only butterfly farm in Europe, both in the Canary Islands.

The building is in Thai style. To give the building authenticity, many of the building materials, as well as the decorative elements, were brought directly from Thailand. The blue tiles of the pagoda that covers the entrance were made in that colour specifically in Chiang Mai for the butterfly house. The choice of Thai style for the building is due to factors such as aesthetic and conceptual harmony with the Buddhist temple next to the butterfly house, the Enlightenment Stupa. Furthermore, it was in Asia, specifically in China, that butterflies were first bred for silk production 4,000 years ago, and later in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia for captive display.

The flight area of the butterfly farm covers a glazed tropical garden of more than 900 square metres in area and eight metres in height, in which between 1,500 and 2,000 butterflies of exotic species from tropical areas around the world fly. More than 150 different species can be seen throughout the year. Seventy percent of the butterflies flying in the butterfly garden are home-grown and 30 percent are imported from their places of origin.

Apart from butterflies, there are also other animals such as birds, iguanas, turtles, fish and a Tammar’s wallaby.

source : www.wikipedia.com