This tucked away butterfly and insect museum at a local High School in Taipei blew us away!
It’s no secret that Pauline and I are always on the lookout for butterfly sightings. There are some amazing butterflies here in Taiwan. It’s one of the main reasons that we packed up our lives and moved here. Our coworkers have picked up on this too, and thanks to one of them we found out about the ChengGong High School 成功高中 museum. We figured it would be great option for a rainy day – and it was!
Turns out this was basically the most complete collection of butterflies from around the world we had ever seen. That includes the amazing entomological collection at WSU, my home town university, which has over 1.25 million insect specimens. I don’t remember being so wowed by a species exhibit since visiting the one at WSU as a child. But the remarkable thing about this museum is that its mainly the collection of one former teacher, Chen Wei-Shou 陳維壽.
You can easily spend as little or as long as you want here. One of the most notable things about the museum is that it details the history of the butterfly industry in Taiwan. Once upon a time, Taiwan was known as the butterfly kingdom because of the massive amount specimens it exported annually. There were also a number of handicrafts made from actual butterflies. At the end of the tour, there is an entire room that displays examples of this. It is both a bit overwhelming and amazing.
We appreciated the balance they strike – acknowledging the harmful impact that butterfly harvesting had on Taiwan’s butterfly population while also honoring the fact that it provided financially for many families in difficult economic situations at the time. And the good news is, Taiwan has taken a lot of proactive steps towards protecting this national treasure. Furthermore an amazing number of Taiwanese people are now butterfly nature enthusiasts! (see our post on the hiking with the butterfly conservation society of Taiwan. )
The volunteers here were top notch, and very friendly. We were guided around by a student volunteer who wanted to show off his knowledge, and his English. He shared stories about the local conservation movement as well as teaching us about various lepidotera specimens from around the globe. My favorite thing he showed us was their most valuable specimen, a huge half male, half female Atlas moth! I never would have realized what it was, had he not pointed it out.
At the end of the tour we were surprised with a live critter petting zoo of sorts! They have some very interesting insects (such as a stag beetle, walking sticks, and their more exotic cousin the prickly stick bug pictured bellow). But that’s not all! They also have a few other random surprises like a snake and this beautiful yellow African Fat-tailed Gecko.
All in all, a great Saturday afternoon visit. We would highly recommend it to anyone.
Where & When to Visit
The museum is located on the third floor of the High School. It is only open from 10am to 4pm on Saturdays for visitors. It’s easy to get to off the blue line of the MRT. Google maps will get you to the school and then there are lots signs that will point you in the right direction. Admission is free, although they gladly accept donations!
Also, please note, photography within the specimen hall is prohibited! Although, you are welcome to take pictures with the signs outside, in the butterfly export history room, and with live critters!