Petaloudes: The Valley of Butterflies

Petaloudes, the Valley of Butterflies is located on the western side of the Greek island of Rhodes, about 25 kilometers away from the city. It is home to thousands of butterflies of the Rhodes subspecies of the Jersey Tiger Moth. The butterflies are attracted by the aroma from the valley’s Oriental Sweet gum trees and creates a unique biotope. Once they reach their destination, they settle lightly on the trunks of trees and rocks. Due to the increased amount of visitors, these moths are facing population issues as they have no stomach and when disturbed tend to fly frequently and thus deplete their energy and die before they could reproduce.

Photo Credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/46785534@N… https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Butte…

Source: http://www.amusingplanet.com/2015/09/pet…