Stony Brook Millstone Watershed Association Hosts Butterfly Day on August 13^th

On August 13, 2005, the 5^th Annual Butterfly Festival will be held on the Stony Brook Millstone Watershed Association Reserve in Pennington.  Butterfly Day activities will begin at 10:00 and run throughout the day, until 4:00 p.m. We are expanding the event this year beyond the Butterfly House Tours, children’s crafts and naturist-led hikes to include children’s games, music, earth-friendly crafters and merchants, a Recycled-Wear Fashion Show, and daylong demonstrations by alternative energy vendors. We will also have food and other refreshments available for sale.  This family festival celebrates the beauty and magic of New Jersey’s native butterflies and our local resources and especially highlights the wonders of the Kate Gorrie Memorial Butterfly House.

”The beauty and fragility of butterflies embody the natural environment that surrounds us,” said Jim Waltman, Executive Director of the Watershed Association.  “Butterflies are such an important and magical part of our world, yet so easy to destroy.  They embody the importance of habitat protection for these, and other important native species.  We hope for a strong showing of families at this year’s Butterfly Day to learn about and celebrate these whimsical creatures."
 
Admission, which supports the mission of the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed, will be $15 per car and will cover all of the day’s events.  For more information, call the Buttinger Nature Center at (609) 737-7592.  No advance registration is necessary. The Butterfly House is open from dawn till dusk, seven days a week from May to October.  

“On the surface, the Butterfly Festival is simply a celebration,” added Jeff Hoagland, the Watershed Association’s Education Director.  “It is an affirmation that magic does indeed exist and that it is important.  Butterfly Day showcases the profound beauty of nature, but also serves as a reminder that we are stewards of this planet. Our daily actions have a variety of impacts on the environment both near and far and, with just a little forethought, we can help our friends and neighbors.  By planting a native butterfly plants we can invite some of natures miracles into our yards.”

The mission of the Stony Brook Millstone Watershed Association is to “enhance the quality of the natural environment in the 265-square mile region drained by Stony Brook and the Millstone River. We address key issues affecting water quality and land use, educate area residents about the ecology of the natural environment, and preserve open space by maintaining a 785-acre nature reserve and a working organic farm.”

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