These butterfly specimen products come from a butterfly farm located in the Atlantic Forest (neighbor of the Amazon Rainforest). Over 93% of this forest has been lost to deforestation mostly due to coffee farming and Asian water buffalo ranching. The remaining 7% is still among the biologically richest and diverse forests in the world and exhibits a high number of species that can be found nowhere else on Earth. Over 60% of Brazil’s threatened animal species call this forest home. In order to work towards preserving what is left, it is crucial to encourage the natives of this region to practice sustainable development through improved forest management techniques and organic agriculture.
The butterfly farm supplying these products preserves the native trees and flowers that serve as habitat for butterflies native to this forest. The butterflies’ life cycle is encouraged on the farm and the specimens are harvested after they die naturally. The farm is managed by Mrs. Elizabeth and employs her entire family of 24 people along with 40 additional natives. The artwork is created by Sonia Gimenes, originally from Brazil but now a US citizen. Her award-winning artwork has been displayed in museums and art exhibitions across the United States.
Through the sale of these pieces, the goal is to promote the sustainable development that this farm is practicing and support them in their efforts to provide an ecologically friendly career for their native people. In turn, we are all helping to protect one of the most important forests left in the world.