"Beyond their magic and beauty, butterflies play a vital role in our ecosystems"

"Through their life-cycle, butterflies offer a masterclass in change, growth and renewal"

- By ASTRID VARGAS

WHEN EXPERIENCING change in life, it's wise to turn to nature for guidance. With billions of years of trial and error behind it, nature offers wise lessons on how we can adapt to new and unforeseen circumstances and events. As the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus said more than 2,500 years ago, "Change is the greatest constant in nature." And few creatures do change quite like butterflies.

In a world where global warming, habitat loss and degradation, and biodiversity declines are quickly shaking things up, these colourful, wild pollinators remind us what transformation really looks like. Through their life-cycle - from crawling caterpillar to hidden chrysalis to adult winged wonder - butterflies offer a masterclass in change, growth and renewal.

My relationship with butterflies began in 2018 when I read an article about their silent declines. It caught me off-guard. I was aware of the bee crisis but hadn't stopped to consider that butterflies, too, were disappearing before our eyes. I'd spent my life in conservation, working to restore endangered mammals, including the Iberian lynx in Spain, black-footed ferret in North America and golden-crowned sifaka in Madagascar, yet I'd never contemplated the possible extinction of an entire taxonomic group. So, I decided to raise and observe local butterfly species, such as the painted lady, the peacock and the small tortoise shell - partly to learn how to help them and partly out of awe.

As I delved deeper into this area, I discovered a miniature new world of astonishing complexity and beauty, a world that not only blew me away in terms of mind-boggling science and astonishing natural processes, but that also led me to reflect - often deeply - on life, death and everything in between. Butterflies, I realised, could impart great wisdom.