The House of Butterflies, Butterfly Arc, originates from an idea developed by the naturalistic entomologist Enzo Moretto already in the first half of the seventies. The project was initially developed through a series of experiences and temporary exhibitions. In a later stage, thanks to the fundamental contribution given by the naturalist Gabriella Tamino, the first Italian House of Butterflies was founded and was inaugurated in 1988 at Montegrotto Terme in the province of Padova. At present the House of Butterflies of Montegrotto Terme represents a most important living museum center and is the site of initiatives spread worldwide as well as the site for planning and creating the most important Italian Houses of Butterflies, such as that established at Milano Marittima in Emilia Romagna, the large museum center of Bordano in Friuli Venezia Giulia and the experience of Monteserra in Sicily. Since its opening the House of Butterflies of Montegrotto Terme (which was the only one existing in Italy for a long period of time) obtained a broad and convinced approval by the general public, the press and the academic community.
Since its beginning the House of Butterflies of Montegrotto Terme, which has been the only one established in Italy for many years, obtained a sincere and broad approval by the public, the press and the academic community. Every year the House of Butterflies is visited and appreciated by a large number of people, some tens of a thousand a year, a large fraction of visitors being represented by schools, organized groups, and a number of scientists and scholars. A similar situation obtains for virtual visits via Internet at the site www.butterflyarc.it, the first site in this field worldwide (created in the early nineties). Moreover, each year thousands of students and interested people take advantageof didactic experiences with butterflies. The latter project established at Butterfly Arc, as well as several other projects focused on the education to the local environment , are promoted by the association Amici della Terra/Friends of the Earth, in the frame of the European campaign for the preservation of butterflies and their environment "Ciao Farfalla/Project Butterfly". Nowadays the House of Butterflies of Montegrotto is known worldwide.It is appropriate to emphasize that the idea of the House of Butterflies has obtained a greater appreciation in the Anglo-Saxon world, especially in England, where a multicentennial interest and attention for natural sciences pushed the onset of the initial important projects already at the beginning of the eighties. These initiatives characterized the end of the past millennium for their originality and innovation and can be compared for their importance and reputation with the origin of the first botanical gardens in the world which (perhaps not by chance) occurred in Padova in the XVIth century.

In the "House of Butterflies" one can find very pretty exotic gardens where every day more than 400 out of the most beautiful butterflies in the world court each other, feed from the flowers and reproduce. There are three gardens with tropical butterflies: Amazonian or neotropical, Afro-tropical and Indo-australian. This feature guarantees the originality of the House in comparison with other initiatives presently activated worldwide, which do not separate butterflies on the basis of their origin. In the "House of Butterflies" one can observe all the stages involved in the development of butterflies: egg, caterpillar, chrysalid and butterfly. The differences between diurnal butterflies and nocturnal butterflies ("moths") are clearly visible. The visitor can learn and directly meet some out of the most significant living examples of aposematic protective colors and tricks adopted for survival, such as the Batesian, Mullerian and cryptic mimicry. To observe ex vivo means: to see the behaviour of butterflies and to carry out studies in the field of ethology. In this connection, the most frequently studied butterflies are represented by Neotropical heliconidae, that have developed a complex social behaviour and spend part of the day to share and explore the surrounding environment, while they come together to the same place in the evening to sleep together after organizing themselves in a cluster. It has been demonstrated that some out of these butterfies can recognize the environment, run over again some pathways which connect the nocturnal couch, the flowers and the sites of evening aggregation. The world of the house of butterflies certainly is very broad, however also other additional species deserve to be particularly mentioned.

In particular, the Idea butterflies, large and graceful white and black butterflies, which display the lightest known mode of flying. The large and gandy Amazonian Morpho butterflies with their iridescent blue colours. The papilios coming from all over the world that include some intensely coloured and caudate species, as well as species known for the characteristic presence of females differing in shape and colours. The fantastic and mythical Ornithoperae, the largest butterflies worldwide, showing incredible colours, all of which are protected by the international agreements concerning wild fauna. All the butterflies are inserted and live comfortably in an environment which has been specifically developed for them. This is not a traditional garden. Our sense of beauty does not obtain for butterflies; even though the house of butterflies includes vegetable species which attract due attention and possesses natural corners rivalling with those of the most beautiful botanical gardens, butterflies prefer spaces and environments which are useful for their life. As a consequence, one can find plants with leaves partially eaten by caterpillars, or showing typical indications of parasitic attacks. This is not common in botanical gardens where those antiparasite treatments are performed that are not allowed in the house of butterflies. In the house only systems based on natural biological control are used and each plant is allowed to adopt its own spaces and development strategies in comparison with other nearby plants. Many plants are selected since they are known to produce flowers which are adequate for butterflies, to provide a suitable trestle for the night, as well as for their territorial and nuptial behaviours. Additionally, they simply modulate the environment as regards the levels of light, shade and humidity. Even the ground, which is occasionally free from vegetation, becomes a very important factor for the survival of butterflies, that can directly find mineral salts essential for their life.

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