The butterfly man
The butterfly effect is said to cause cyclones. In Parag Rangnekar’s life, the effect of another kind preserves and conserves Goa’s bio-diverse ecology. Rangnekar’s forays into butterfly and insect habitats have unearthed new species in the dense overgrowth and forests in Goa. This Butterfly Man’s deep scientific study is his calling card even as he continues to discover new species. He has discovered 17 new documented records of butterflies first sighted in Goa. Each one caused a flutter in the naturalist-ecologist’s mind.
“Describing a species new to science is the dream of every naturalist. I’ve been fortunate twice. For someone not trained as a taxonomist, my headways make my life sweeter,” smiles the 48-year-old Rangnekar.
In the torrential Goa monsoon, he is orienting nature seekers on bespoke trails. Rangnekar’s tryst with butterflies has evolved into a conservation movement, with the creation of two butterfly gardens—one in MES College Vasco, and the other set to open in Benaulim. This is apt since Goa’s official state butterfly is the Malabar Tree Nymph, a black and white vision similar to an origami butterfly.
Goa’s hitherto undocumented butterflies found their home in a book he published in 2007, A Photographic Guide to the Butterflies of Goa. The hunger to discover took him to another world: the world of dragonflies. “I chanced on a paper about Goa’s dragonflies, which recorded just 22 of them. Since 2008, this count has become 108,” says Rangnekar. He realised that finding and naming a species is not enough. It is crucial to conserve the species as a legacy of Goa’s wildlife by involving the local community, “to incentivise conservation.”
The ambition ignited the embers of a mindful ideology. He involved communities in the Goan hinterland. Together, they spread awareness, which eventually led to the establishing of the wildlife-based community tourism venture Mrugaya Xpeditions. It offers guests authentic experiential journeys into the seaside state’s ecology.
“We conduct butterfly trails, study their behaviour, breeding, biology, lifestyle, and seasonality. It’s important to understand which butterfly flourishes in which season and the host plants they feed on,” he says.
When Rangnekar was a small boy, he would set off on an eco-safari with his family to observe the flora and fauna of the region. “All the skills during those hunting trips taught me patience, and gave me the ability to observe, and listen to different sounds,” he smiles. R
angnekar forayed into serious documentation only after acquiring a Masters in plant protection and agriculture. He volunteered with the World Wildlife Fund. “The transition from naturalist or taxonomist to working with local communities to educate and connect livelihoods with conservation is important for me,” says the 48-year-old, who set up Goa’s first tourism cooperative in Netravali.
In the process of creating a checklist of butterflies according to area, and spreading knowledge about host plants, nectar sources and insects laying eggs, he feels city folk can do their bit too. “Unlike most residential complexes that have landscaped manicured gardens with no host plants, you can plant lime, karri patta, etc. Butterflies prefer specific plants to lay eggs; for example the Red Poirot likes the bryophylum,” he explains.
Being a bio-encyclopaedia, a walking talking Nature laboratory or a museum of bio-organisms, Rangnekar is anguished by the constant threat to wildlife. During his forest treks, he is drawn to insects, strange-looking wildlife and plants. On one such trail, accompanied by Zoological Survey of India experts, he discovered a new species—a parasitic wasp, which was later named Kudakrumia (Sinhalese) rangnekari, after him. Today, as state co-ordinator for Goa of the Indian Bird Conservation Network, and founding president of the Goa Bird Conservation Network, his life’s passion has been recognised. “I am not an activist, more a believer of science,” he says. The butterflies would agree.