- Activity Centre
- Aquarium
- Asiatic lions
- Avon Gorge & Downs Exhibit
- Bug World
- Butterfly Forest
- Gardens & Smarty Plants
- Gibbon Island
- Gorilla Island
- Heap of Trouble
- Monkey Jungle
- Gibbon Island
- Adventure Playground
- Reptile House
- Seal & Penguin Coasts
- Coral Cafe
- Explorers' Creek
- ZooRopia
- Terrace Theatre
- Twilight World
- Zona Brazil
- Zoolympics
Butterfly Forest
This exciting exhibit features spectacular butterfly and moth species from across the world and immerses visitors in a butterfly paradise as they wander freely through a colourful array of butterflies, moths and flowers.
Taking the theme of a tropical rainforest, the undercover walk-through is also surrounded by a landscaped Nectar Garden.
Butterflies are found in almost every part of the world, from the Arctic to the tropics, and are incredibly diverse – with around 18,000 known species. In recent years this diversity has declined dramatically, mainly due to human activity such as agriculture, logging and urban expansion.
Visitors to Bristol Zoo will be able to learn about the conservation of rare Invertebrate species and their habitats.
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Butterfly species:
• Owl Butterfly
• Postman Butterfly
• Zebra-winged Butterfly
• Flambeau Butterfly
• The Glasswing Butterfly
• The Christmas Swallowtail.
• The Blue Morpho.
Moth species:
• Comet moth
• Atlas moth
How to attract butterflies to your garden
Butterflies will visit any garden, however small, if they can feed from suitable nectar plants. Butterflies like warmth so choose sunny, sheltered spots when planting nectar plants.
Plant lots of different nectar plants to increase the number of species and the same types of plants together in blocks.
Try to plant flowers right through the butterfly season from spring to autumn. Spring flowers are vital for butterflies coming out of hibernation. Autumn flowers help butterflies build up their reserves for winter.
Plant original species as they provide much more nectar than hybrids.
Prolong flowering by deadheading flowers, mulching with organic compost, and watering well to keep the plants healthy.
Plants that are well-watered will produce far more nectar for hungry butterflies.
To find out what food plants attract butterflies click on the PDF below – Alternatively visit www.butterfly-conservation.org to obtain detailed advice on exactly what you can do to help attract butterflies to your garden.
