A storm of yellow

A One-spot Grass Yellow, four Broad-bordered Grass Yellows, and two pale green Mottled Emigrants – all different species of butterflies -- pause together to sip minerals from the sand in Fatikchhari's Hazarikhil Wildlife Sanctuary. These gentle wanderers range widely across South and Southeast Asia, drifting through forest edges, open fields and sunlit clearings. Adults feed on nectar from small flowering plants, while caterpillars rely on legumes (Grass Yellows) and Senna species (Emigrant). They shelter low in shrubs and light woodland, rarely still for long. All three are listed as "Least Concern" by the IUCN, yet habitat loss, pesticides and disappearing host plants quietly threaten their future.

Photo: Shameem Hasan