Breeding butterflies in a small town. Breeding butterflies in an apartment. Calculation of “net” profit per month from the sale of butterflies


Butterflies are graceful and unique creatures; their world is diverse and amazes with its splendor. The beauty of these magical creatures has always delighted people. But butterflies are not only lovely creatures; with their help you can create your own home business, all year round.

The greatest demand is for tropical butterflies, which are not only large in size but also have an unusual coloring.

You ask, how can you make money from this?

For various celebrations (wedding, birthday, anniversary, etc.) you can organize a fireworks display of live butterflies. This service has recently been provided by holiday agencies. The butterfly fireworks technology is quite simple.

First, 10-20 cooled insects are carefully placed in a box. Cooled butterflies are motionless. Then the box is heated, the butterflies come to life and rush out of the open box into the bright light. Just imagine a wedding in a banquet hall, where beautiful butterflies will fly among the guests. In addition, you can arrange a photo session with butterflies.

By March 8th, you can pack butterflies in beautifully decorated envelopes or boxes. And when the envelope is opened, a bright butterfly will fly out from there. This design option will be an unusual gift for your beloved.

You can also use butterflies to make elegant surprise cards, New Year’s gifts, lively valentines and much more.

The big downside to this business is that the lifespan of butterflies is only a couple of weeks. Therefore, it is necessary to grow them to order. And the extra butterflies that remain unclaimed can be dried after death and made into a panel that can be sold at any time.

To organize a home business for raising butterflies, you will need an insectarium - a special room for breeding and keeping insects.

Ordering such an insectarium will cost you from $800 to $1,500, depending on the size and design. In such an insectarium you can breed up to 500 butterflies. If it is colorfully decorated with plants, waterfalls and other decorative elements, then the insectarium can become a very worthy decoration for an office, apartment or entertainment center.

Can be used as an insectarium or an ordinary aquarium. It will only need to be equipped with equipment that will control the tropical climate: maintain a certain temperature and humidity. The temperature in the insectarium should be 26-28 degrees, and the humidity - 80-90%. In such conditions, butterflies reproduce best.

The equipment for the insectarium includes humidity and temperature sensors, a heater and a humidifier. The cost of equipment for an insectarium ranges from $450 to $750, depending on the size of the insectarium and design.

Inside the insectarium there are sticks to which the pupae are tied at a distance of 15 cm from each other. This distance allows the butterflies to spread their wings without touching each other.

At home, butterflies feed on sugar or honey water, as well as rotten fruit. Percentage of butterflies emerging at ideal conditions reaches 90%. But before getting started, I recommend practicing breeding ordinary butterflies.

How much can you earn selling butterflies?
?

Dolls cost from $3 to $15 (you can purchase them online by mail). And the cost of butterflies from these pupae is $20-50.

For example, wedding agencies sell mini-fireworks of just 3 butterflies for $100. A salute of 11 butterflies placed in a holiday gift box costs $250. An elegant surprise card costs $50.

Thus, by selling several fireworks of 11 butterflies, you will fully pay for all the equipment. Butterfly breeding is not only a beautiful, but also a very profitable home business.

After you have established a permanent market for butterflies, you can think about not raising butterflies, but rather breeding them.

To do this, you will need a greenhouse with a ceiling height of at least 3 meters, and food plants for the caterpillars (without this, the butterflies will not mate). Now you can become a supplier of dolls yourself.

There are several options for developing this business. A winter garden or greenhouse greatly simplifies the task, but it can be maintained even in a residential apartment (in the summer) and does not necessarily require special equipment. A glass insectarium 75x75x100 cm is suitable for home keeping (it can be made from plexiglass).

Your own butterfly farm is the most expensive, but also the most profitable way of doing business. Butterflies are raised on the farm, from mating to the emergence of a full-fledged butterfly. farm for tropical butterflies can be built by analogy with the Novosibirsk one. In Novosibirsk, about 60 square meters are allocated for the Vanessa farm. m. The entire area is divided into several zones by glass partitions.

In the first zone, a maternity ward is set up, where a certain microclimate is maintained all the time with the help of special equipment - high temperature (+26-28°C) and relative humidity up to 70-80%.

In this zone, butterflies mate and lay eggs on plant leaves. Since the butterfly lays up to 200 eggs in a bunch on one leaf, they should be carefully distributed over all the leaves with a brush.

Most butterflies feed on a honey solution and juicy fruits, which are laid out on artificial branch feeders or flower-shaped feeders. This decorative feeder in the form of a flower with a diameter of 15 cm can be installed on a pole with a diameter of 2 cm. The feeding cups are filled with nectar - sugar syrup, jam, honey solution, and pieces of bananas and various juicy fruits are also laid out.

The second zone is set up for feeding the caterpillars. Southern trees grow here. In one month, a caterpillar can eat up a completely young tree, so for the constant planting of new ones, seedlings of southern trees are grown in a separate greenhouse.

The third zone is for growing pupae. When the caterpillar entangles itself in a cocoon, it is moved from this area, where, under the supervision of experienced workers, it transforms into a butterfly. To maintain such a farm, a staff of about 7 workers and one experienced entomologist is required.

There are special thermostat cabinets where the butterfly hatches from the pupa, as well as feeders and other equipment and tools necessary for breeding butterflies.

You can set up a farm at a lower cost if you breed not tropical beauties, but butterflies of the local flora.

Among them there are quite beautiful specimens - swallowtail, peacock's eye, lemongrass. Caterpillars of native butterflies can live and feed on the shoots of carrots, parsley, dill and even nettles. Like overseas butterflies, they need light and warmth to produce offspring year-round.

In captivity, caterpillars are additionally fed vitamins and antibiotics. Next is the natural formation of the pupa and the emergence of the butterfly. It should also be taken into account that when breeding in captivity, insects quickly begin to degrade, so from time to time you will have to collect butterflies in nature for an “infusion of fresh blood.” The entomological net is the main, most versatile and most necessary tool for hunting butterflies. You can buy it ready-made or make it yourself.

Another business option is to purchase butterflies to order from a farm for a specific event, and then sell them to the client at your own premium, or become a representative of this company.

Or you can just open a butterfly salon.

Insects are raised in a special greenhouse, after which the butterfly pupae are moved to the salon's greenhouse, where a constant elevated temperature and high humidity are maintained. The exhibition includes butterflies from Indonesia, the Philippines, and Malaysia. Visitors to the salon may be allowed to pick up insects and photograph them.

Sources: mirzam.ru, Sense-Life.com

It is unlikely that anyone can resist the incredible beauty of butterflies. The graceful shapes and unsurpassed colors of the iridescent wings are simply amazing. Nowadays, these insects can be found in all countries of the world. Today, science knows more than 200 thousand species of butterflies. Among them there are tiny ones only a few millimeters long, and giants with a wingspan of up to 30 centimeters.

It is impossible not to take into account the fact that these beautiful creatures have long been not only an object of research, but also a promising and highly profitable business. Now breeding winged flowers is a beauty that brings profit.

Who buys butterflies?

The main consumers of these wonderful insects are various holiday agencies.

The pigeons, which were previously released during wedding celebrations, have been replaced by the so-called “live tropical butterfly fireworks.” The cost of one such butterfly fluctuates around 1500-2000 rubles, but no one will order one butterfly, otherwise what kind of fireworks will you get?

When ordering, the moths are slightly cooled (so they don't have the urge to fly) and placed in a beautiful and colorful holiday box decorated with ribbons and holiday paper. After the box with the “surprise” is delivered to the special event, it is heated at the right moment and the butterflies are released, eager to fly. Such a fascinating spectacle will not leave anyone indifferent, and the guests will certainly enjoy it.

Butterflies are actively used by holiday agencies in big cities, where this business flourishes, but not every agency can boast of such an unusual and colorful service. As for provincial, small towns, in most cases there is no gift from butterflies.

Also, only a few people know that to grow butterflies at home, you don’t need to create a whole laboratory with various flasks and glass boxes. To do this, you just need to read the following recommendations, and you will be able to breed these beautiful creatures right at home, and also build a good business from it.

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Breeding moths at home

The first thing that will most likely come to your mind is to find the largest and fattest caterpillar in the area, put it in a three-liter jar and wait to see what comes out of it. But the downside is that from this breeding you will only get a type of butterfly that will not please you with its special and bright colors, because this is the way of breeding butterflies as a common hobby, and we need a good and profitable business.

Therefore, you are more likely to be interested in tropical species of butterflies. They are simply wonderful appearance and quite large in size. It is clear that you won’t be able to find them in the nearest forest, and therefore you can purchase them either from entrepreneurs who practice butterfly breeding, or order them online. Prices for pupae of tropical species are approximately 50-300 rubles per piece. Delivery is carried out by courier (directly to your home) or by mail.

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​​​Prerequisites

Your task is to provide insects with conditions that are as close as possible to the places where they live. Therefore, be patient, gather your willpower, and you can start breeding, and then good business with a stable income.

At home, caterpillars, cocoons and moths are kept in special aquariums - insectariums. It is worth considering that different types of butterflies require different sizes this aquarium. It is even interesting that large species of butterflies can die if the “living space” is too small for them; this is also worth paying attention to. In insectariums, high temperatures and high humidity must be maintained, as if in a tropical forest. To do this, you can use heaters and humidifiers, which are easy to find in any pet store.

The feeding problem is a little more difficult to solve. You will need to fork out money for a greenhouse, because you need to feed the insects with special tropical plants, and you will have to grow them yourself. Keep in mind that you will need a lot of so-called food, because caterpillars are real gluttons. But when it comes to feeding butterflies, things are simpler; they are fed with natural honey, sweet fruits and sugar.

Butterfly breeding as a business can be organized at home. In this case, an exciting hobby will bring considerable dividends. Butterflies are one of the most beautiful insects on our planet. In addition, there are many different types of them.

It is worth considering the fact that butterflies are currently a popular and fashionable element for various events, as well as romantic surprises.

Business prospects

Butterfly breeding, which can be done at home, will be a profitable endeavor. Clients who order these beautiful insects are usually quite wealthy people. It is they who turn to agencies specializing in holidays.

The cost of one butterfly is about two hundred rubles, and they are ordered in large enough quantities to arrange a “live” fireworks display. For a colorful and spectacular spectacle, insects are subjected to slight cooling. This makes it possible to deprive them of the desire to fly. Butterflies are placed in a beautifully decorated box, which is heated at the right time of the holiday. After opening the lid, the butterflies scatter throughout the room in a magnificent fireworks display.

Butterfly breeding as a business is a very profitable project. Tropical insect species are ordered in large quantities. By purchasing three butterflies, the client will pay approximately 3,000 rubles, and if fifty copies are needed, they will cost 35,000 rubles.

Magnificent and graceful insects are actively purchased by holiday agencies providing their services in major cities. As for small settlements, then such a business is simply absent in them.

It is worth keeping in mind that butterfly breeding as a business does not necessarily have to be focused on wholesale buyers. There are people who want to purchase them for individual creative gifts.

Breeding "live goods" at home

Few people know that in order to grow butterflies, you do not need to create a bulky laboratory equipped with glass boxes and flasks.

You can purchase tropical moths that are quite large in size and have attractive colors from entrepreneurs involved in this business. Pupae, from which the butterflies you are interested in will soon appear, can be ordered online, paying from fifty to three hundred rubles for each. Delivery can be made either by mail or directly to your home by courier.

Required conditions

In the room where insects are located, the temperature and humidity should be similar to the places where they live in nature. This is why butterfly breeding as a business will require patience from you. Only in this case stable income will be provided.

Caterpillars, cocoons and moths must be kept in special aquariums called insectariums. At the same time, depending on the types of butterflies, you will need to purchase containers of various sizes. It is worth remembering that large butterflies may die if they are kept in a small aquarium. In insectariums, the air temperature should be high.

There is also a need to maintain high humidity. Conditions should resemble tropical forests for insects. To do this, you will need to use humidifiers and heaters. All necessary equipment can be purchased at pet stores.

The problem with nutrition is somewhat more difficult to solve. You will have to purchase a greenhouse in which to grow tropical plants. It is worth remembering that you will need quite a lot of food, because caterpillars are real gluttons. As for feeding butterflies, sweet fruits, natural honey and sugar are enough for them.

Important points

In an aquarium where butterflies are raised, dry branches must be placed. The fact is that the beautiful insect that is born must dry out its wings.

To do this, it is attached to the branches upside down. This process usually lasts for several hours. If this moment is not provided for, then the butterflies simply will not be able to fly, therefore, it is unlikely that they will be realized.

What to do if the butterflies have not found their buyer?

Butterfly farming as a business can fail. What to do if it was not possible to sell the insects on time? There's no need to get upset. Butterflies can simply be dried, framed in a beautiful wooden frame and sold to connoisseurs of true art.

Bumblebee breeding business

There are currently about two and a half thousand biotech companies on our planet. Some of them are engaged in breeding bumblebees. Attempts to domesticate these insects have been made since the beginning of the nineteenth century.

However, industrial breeding became possible only after it was discovered that carbon dioxide affects the oogenesis of bumblebee queens. This discovery made it possible to obtain offspring from striped insects in a controlled and year-round manner.

Since the 80-90s of the last century, technology for the industrial breeding of bumblebees began to be developed on this basis in some countries of the world. Today, more than twenty-five companies operate on it. They produce almost half a million families annually. Moreover, it is, as a rule, the large ground bumblebee that is of interest. The purchase price of his families for the farms ranges from one hundred twenty-five to one hundred and fifty dollars.

Profitable business

Bumblebees are bred for the purpose of their use in agriculture as pollinators for many plants. A special effect is manifested when these flying insects are present in greenhouses. After pollination by bumblebees, an increase in yield is observed from five to fifty percent. In addition, fruits grown in this way have a higher taste.

Is the business of raising bumblebees profitable? Undoubtedly. In addition to increasing the yield of its own crops, the farm can earn a lot of money by selling families. The amount of profit will depend on production volumes.

Breeding crayfish

These invertebrate animals can be raised not only in specialized farms. Small-sized garden plots with ponds are also suitable for the implementation of the project.

For the purpose of breeding crayfish, either a pond or a factory farm can be organized. The first of them is considered the most profitable in economic terms.
A profitable crayfish breeding farm for aspiring entrepreneurs is a farm that raises fingerlings. Their sale on the market will provide the greatest income.

The technology for growing cancer is quite labor-intensive. First of all, females that already have live eggs on their legs should be caught in natural reservoirs. Then they should be transported to your farm. To raise one ton of crayfish, it will take from five hundred to six hundred females. In swimming pools, small ponds or using special devices carry out pre-incubation of embryos. Special attention In this case, attention should be paid to aerating the water.

The crayfish breeding process requires constant monitoring. It is important to maintain a certain quality of water by monitoring the amount of oxygen and hydrogen dissolved in it. The food resources of the reservoir also require careful study.

The presence of zooplankton, algae, worms, etc. can significantly reduce the cost of growing commercial crayfish and fingerlings. If the water temperature exceeds seven degrees, invertebrate animals are fed with boiled or fresh food, which can be slaughterhouse waste, meat, shellfish, vegetables, etc.

Is it profitable to breed crayfish? Yes, the business is quite profitable. This is proven economic calculations. Thus, the purchase of two hundred kilograms of invertebrate animals costs twenty thousand rubles. After a year of cultivation, six tons of crayfish can be sold. The cost of a kilogram is two hundred rubles. The profit from the event will be more than RUB 1,000,000.

Raising mice

There are many options for biotechnology-based businesses. One of them is mouse breeding. The main exporting country of experimental rodents is Argentina. The mice are supplied to US research centers as well as university laboratories.

Biotech companies are breeding difficult rodents. These animals are genetically modified, which allows experiments on them to be carried out with the greatest effect.

Butterfly world diverse, striking the imagination with its grace and special, unique charm. People have always admired the beauty of these magical creatures. Butterflies live on all continents of the Earth and in a wide variety of landscapes; they are not found only in Antarctica. There are about 140 thousand species of butterflies known in the world. But butterflies are not only beautiful creatures, they can also bring good income. Breeding exotic butterflies in artificial conditions for subsequent sale is very popular in the West. This business is exactly like releasing live butterflies at various celebrations: weddings, birthdays, corporate parties, originated in America about 100 years ago.

Are in great demand live cards: a swallowtail butterfly is placed in a box for 9-10 dollars and sent as a gift. The recipient opens the box, and a living, bright, fluttering flower flies out, causing amazement and delight. The world's first and largest Butterfly House is located in London. In California, and in other southern states of the United States, the custom of releasing butterflies during wedding ceremonies is not a passing fashion. There, in a warm climate, butterflies are taken “from nature” and released into nature; it is not at all necessary to breed them.

But in Russia The climate is very different from the tropical one, and the butterflies are not so big and beautiful, so it is better to grow them here. Until recently, in Russia there was only a single farm for growing such butterflies, just 10 km from the capital. Organized this farm Elena Preobrazhenskaya. The company breeds butterflies from Africa, Southeast Asia, America, and Southern Europe. Butterflies are raised here from the egg stage to the butterfly stage.
The butterflies on the farm are not just raised for sale. They are used to create fireworks and fireworks, they are used as gifts for guests at various events, and they are sent to the address specified by the customer in the form greeting card. Butterflies are ordered for maternity hospitals, for filming advertisements and music videos, and for presentations of new albums by popular artists. Often customers are TV channels. Butterflies decorate any event, and it is simply impossible to list all the reasons for which they are bought. They are even ordered simply instead of a bouquet of flowers.

Similar butterfly farm, where butterflies are grown and sold, has now appeared in Novosibirsk. The Novosibirsk company “Vanessa” (translated from Greek means “butterfly”) is currently raising 9 species of daytime tropical butterflies. They all differ in size and color. The wingspan is from 8 to 16 cm. Currently, several companies and individual entrepreneurs are engaged in breeding and selling live butterflies.

  • Butterfly caterpillars

    Butterfly feeding:
    You need to feed the butterfly at least once a day. It must be carefully taken by the base of its wings, brought to the food, and if it is hungry, its proboscis unwinds and plunges into the sweet food. Butterflies feed on a solution of water and honey. To do this, prepare a 10% solution of honey in boiled water at room temperature (nine drops of water of the same volume are added to one drop of honey and mixed thoroughly). A drop of nectar is applied to a saucer and placed directly in front of the butterfly. Tropical specimens readily feed on overripe bananas. After 5-10 minutes the butterfly will eat and fly away. Tropical moth-winged butterflies are easy to catch; you can pick them up in flight with your hands.
    Feeding the butterflies. The mouthparts of butterflies are sucking, the main part of which is the proboscis. Butterflies feed only on the juice of overripe fruits and flower nectar. Under natural conditions, butterflies that feed on nectar prefer flowers of a certain structure. Depending on the structure of the flowers, the length of the proboscis varies among butterflies of different species. Some have proboscis less than 1 cm; the tropical hawkmoth of the genus Manduca (Manduca sexta) has a proboscis length exceeding 25 cm. And peacock-eyes and butterflies of some other families have no mouthparts at all. They do not feed, they live off the caterpillar's savings. Therefore, their life is not long - only a few days.

    Types of popular butterflies:
    In nature, there are a huge number of different species of tropical butterflies. The brightest and largest (wingspan - 10-15 cm) butterflies in the world: Papilionidae, Nymphalidae, Heliconidae and almost all species of Saturniidae. Some of the most accessible and unpretentious butterflies to breed are Caligo and Saturniidae.
    Very beautiful butterfly ( largest butterfly in the world) Attacus atlas, the wingspan of the female reaches 25-30 cm. The bizarrely curved edge of the fore wing imitates a snake's head in shape and color. The habitat of this Saturn is from India. Indonesia and Malaysia to China. The caterpillars feed on the leaves of Ligustrum and Ricinus communis.

    Mating (courtship). To mate, butterflies need certain conditions: air temperature - +28-30°C, humidity - 60-80% and a room about 3 m in height for free movement. Butterflies recognize each other by color, size, wing shape and smell. Some species (Papilionidae, Danaeidae) perform mating dances in flight, touching each other with their antennae. In other species, the female sits on a plant, and the male dances in front of her or drives away another male, defending his territory.

    After mating (which can last several hours), the female flies off in search of a food plant. Availability of food plant - required condition during mating, it is necessary for feeding future caterpillars. After mating, the female lays several dozen fertilized eggs over 5-7 days. What happens next happens without her participation.

  • Butterflies business

    In three weeks on the farm you can raise any butterflies in any quantity. Usually, to be on the safe side, they raise three times as many butterflies as ordered, in order to be sure to meet the deadline. Orders are accepted 2-3 weeks before the event, but there should always be some quantity in stock for emergencies.

    Butterfly price:
    Why are butterflies needed and how much does their flight cost? Moscow butterflies cost on average from 1000 to 2280 rubles per one. Prices depend on the number and size of butterflies: 3 butterflies cost 3120 rubles, 5 butterflies - 4450 rubles, 7 butterflies - 5950 rubles. At least 200 butterflies are sold per month in a fairly large city, especially on holidays. Live postcards, fireworks, and butterfly salutes are popular. Butterfly fireworks are ordered more for weddings - such a pleasure from 11 butterflies costs about 8,000 rubles, and from a larger number - sometimes up to 20 thousand rubles. The payback period for a farm (similar to “Vanessa”) is 1 year.

    Recommendations:
    In order to research the demand for such a service in your region, before you start raising butterflies, start by selling ready-made specimens, purchasing them from the Butterfly World or Vanessa farm. The sale can be timed to coincide with March 8th. In general, at first you may only have European species in your assortment - those that can be found and caught in our area: lemongrass, peacock's eye, admiral, swallowtail and others. If there is a good prospect for the development of this business, you can later organize your own farm. Materials used from suppliers of butterflies and pupae.
    At night, daytime butterflies are placed in any boxes glued with non-toxic glue. The enemy of butterflies is dry air in our apartments, so it is necessary to maintain air humidity or spray with water 1-2 times a day, this will prolong their life. You can place a cotton wool soaked in water in the box overnight.

    If you make a global ranking of the most beautiful insects, then butterflies will undoubtedly take first place. It is unlikely that anyone can resist the natural beauty of these incredible creatures. According to scientists' research, the first butterflies inhabited our planet back in the time of dinosaurs - in the Jurassic period. These days, these insects can be found on all continents, with the possible exception of Antarctica. Today we know over 200 thousand species of butterflies. Among them there are dwarfs several millimeters long, and real giants with a wingspan of up to 30 centimeters.

    It is also curious that these bright and beautiful creatures have long ceased to be just an object of study for entomologists. Today, various companies involved in organizing holidays and other significant events are happy to use butterflies as a living decoration for special events. And butterfly breeding is turning from a less common hobby into a promising and highly profitable business.

    Who buys butterflies?

    As mentioned above, the main consumers of these insects are various holiday agencies. And their clients, in turn, are fairly wealthy citizens of our country. After all, the cost of one butterfly sometimes reaches 1500-2000 rubles. And, naturally, almost no one orders these beautiful insects in a single copy. If earlier (and even now) a couple was released during a wedding celebration, today their place is gradually taken by living tropical butterflies. The so-called fireworks of live butterflies. It is “prepared” as follows.

    Slightly cooled and devoid of the desire to fly, the butterflies are placed in a beautiful holiday box, decorated gift paper and ribbons. The number of insects depends on the wishes and capabilities of the client.

    The more butterflies in the box, the cheaper each of them costs. For example, a mini-fireworks display of three tropical butterflies will cost the customer an average of 3,000 rubles. And a huge “charge” of 50 insects will cost “only” 35,000 rubles. Of course, a lot depends on the type of butterfly. Some especially valuable breeds are valued at 3,000-4,000 rubles per piece.

    The box is closed and taken to the special event. The temperature inside rises at the right moment. The box opens and bright colorful butterflies fly out of it in a beautiful stream. This spectacle, I must say, is very unusual and fascinating. Everyone remains impressed - both the heroes of the occasion and their many guests.

    They also practice another option for decorating the holiday with tropical butterflies. They are placed in special envelopes, one in each. These envelopes are distributed to guests. At the right moment, on a signal, everyone opens their envelopes, and dozens of beautiful butterflies fly out. Such a launch also creates great excitement among the guests. Everyone tries to follow the flight path of their own butterfly. And after the event is over, guests often try to catch their butterfly and take it to their home, where it will delight the eye for several more weeks.

    Butterflies are used not only for fireworks, but also as individual unusual gifts. Just imagine how your significant other or your friends give you a box in which sits a butterfly of unearthly beauty. Those who have already received similar gifts say that the impression remains very strong. It is simply impossible to forget such a beautiful and unusual gift.

    Butterflies are actively used in large cities of our country. But even there, finding such an unusual service as butterfly fireworks is not so easy. As for provincial cities, this type of “decoration” of holidays and special events is completely absent here. This, in turn, opens up broad prospects for aspiring entrepreneurs who are ready to connect their future activities with. Few people know that to grow these beautiful creatures you do not need to create a full-fledged laboratory. Everything can be implemented right at home.

    Breeding butterflies at home

    The easiest way is to find several fat caterpillars somewhere in nature, bring them home, and plant them in a three-liter jar. Next, you need to wait until the caterpillar weaves a cocoon and turns into a pupa. After some time (from several days to several weeks), the pupa will hatch into a butterfly. That's all, actually. The only negative is that in this way you can only get local species of butterflies, which are unlikely to have fantastic colors. This means that you are unlikely to be able to sell them profitably to holiday organizing agencies. This is the path of the average insect lover. We are interested in the path of an entrepreneur.

    And for business, tropical breeds of butterflies are perfect. They look simply fantastic and are quite large in size. You won't be able to find them in the nearest forest. Unless, of course, you are a resident of Brazil or New Zealand. There are three options left. The first is to purchase caterpillars from entrepreneurs who practice butterfly breeding. The second is to go to the tropics yourself and collect caterpillars there. After this, all that remains is to transport the invaluable cargo to your apartment. The third option for starting a business is optimal. You need to find and order a batch of pupae of the butterfly breed you need via the Internet. Nowadays, finding companies that sell dolls is not at all difficult. The cost of dolls of tropical breeds is from 50 to 300 rubles per piece. Delivery is carried out by mail or courier.

    For successful cultivation and further breeding of these insects, it is necessary to create conditions in your apartment that are as close as possible to the places where certain types of butterflies live. At home, caterpillars, cocoons and butterflies are kept in insectariums (aquariums for insects). Different types butterflies require “living space” of various sizes. You can read about this in numerous literature. It is interesting that even caterpillars of many breeds require quite large containers for their cultivation. In small “enclosures” they can die. Since we are talking about tropical species, you must understand that the insectarium must be maintained at high temperatures and high humidity. Just like in a tropical forest. This can be achieved with the help of heaters and humidifiers, which are not difficult to find in any pet store.

    It is much more difficult to solve the problem of feeding. If you breed tropical butterflies, you will also have to feed the caterpillars tropical plants. Some “butterfly farmers” are trying to replace them with other plants or even artificial mixtures. But this trick is not successful with all species. There is only one option left - to grow the necessary plants in a greenhouse. And some butterfly breeders do just that. Keep in mind that you will need quite a lot of feed. After all, it is known that caterpillars have a very good appetite. As for butterflies, managing their diet is somewhat easier. They are fed natural honey, sugar and sweet fruits.

    Small dry twigs must be placed in the container for raising butterflies. They are necessary so that the butterfly, after being born, can hang upside down and spread its wings. In this position, she dries her wings for several hours. If this does not happen, then she will never be able to fly. And it is unlikely that you will be able to sell such insects to your clients.

    What to do with unsold butterflies?

    Even if you didn’t manage to sell all your butterflies on time, don’t be upset. After all, even dried butterflies can be sold profitably to true connoisseurs of beauty and art. You just need to frame them in a beautiful wooden frame, and an unusual three-dimensional picture ready. It is curious that the cost of such a composition consists of the prices of the butterfly itself and the frame. A small painting with one butterfly costs an average of 2,000 rubles. Considering this state of affairs, butterfly breeding can be called a very profitable and virtually waste-free business.