A guidebook on Papua's butterflies

A guidebook on Papua's butterflies

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

We have seen butterflies since our childhood, but most of us
would be unable to identify those exquisite insects.

Dutchman Henk van Mastrigt is an exception. From 1974 until
today, he has been observing, collecting and identifying
butterflies (lepidoptera).

Mastrigt conducted the observation in the hard terrain of
northeast Papua -- from the Mamberamo area to the Cyclops
mountains.

The more significant observations were conducted in the
Mamberamo areas of Dabra (2000), Marina Valen (2004), in Sarmi's
Kumamba Islands (2002), the east coast of Wakde, Masi-masi, Yamma
and Podena (2001), on the slopes of the Cyclops mountains (2000)
and Ubrub (2003).

With the help of his student Edy Rosariyanto, Conservation
International Indonesia and Papua Conservation Fund, Mastrigt
documented his work in a book titled Buku Panduan Lapangan Kupu-
kupu untuk Wilayah Mamberamo Sampai Pegunungan Cyclops (A
Guidebook on Butterflies in Mamberamo and Cyclops Mountains).

This book is not scientific, but it provides quite detailed
information on the species of butterflies found in Mamberamo and
Cyclops mountains.

After about three decades of observation, Mastrigt -- who is
more popularly known as Bruder Henk -- stated that there are
nearly 350 species of butterflies in Jayapura alone and 900
species across Papua.

The book consists of three sections. The first section on
general information comprises three chapters: general
information, knowing butterflies and a description of the
geographic area.

The second section is a short description of the world's fauna
distribution.

The third section provides color pictures of various
butterflies in Papua.

This book is a valuable guide for the public, students or
travelers who love watching butterflies. They can bring this book
as a handy reference while traveling in Papua.

This book is not designed to identify butterflies. People can
refer to other literature for that purpose, such as: Butterflies
of the Indo-Australian Region by D'abrera (1990) and The
Butterflies of Papua New Guinea by Parsons (1999).

According to Mastrigt, the book will help people to understand
butterflies better. Through better understanding, people will be
willing to take part in the conservation effort.

Although this is the first book to cover butterflies in
Mamberamo and Cyclops mountains, it does not pretend to be
complete. It invites people on the field to share any information
they may have to supplement the information contained in the
book.

The book attempts to cover areas in Mamberamo and in Cyclops
mountains, however not all places in this zone are accessible.

For Mastrigt, the publication of this book is an effort to
seek partners who will adopt the mission to conserve butterflies
and the environment of Papua, which is four times the size of
Java.

Mastrigt says he hopes further research on the location can be
made to improve documentation.

A Guidebook on Butterflies in the area of Mamberamo and Cyclops
Mountains

By Henk van Mastrigt and Edy Rosariyanto

Conservation International Indonesia

146 pp