If a group of local butterfly enthusiasts have their way, it will soon be necessary to add the release of commercially-bred butterflies for ceremonial purposes to the list of seemingly bizarre and highly-specific municipal bans in San Francisco.
Environmentalists successfully lobbied the city’s Commission on the Environment to vote unanimously in favor of a resolution outlawing the practice of releasing butterflies at weddings, funerals and other celebrations.
“Many San Franciscans believe that butterflies are animals to be respected and valued as part of the city’s natural heritage and should not be used as decorations or for entertainment,” the resolution states.
The resolution orders the Department of the Environment to work with local lawmakers before final, formal action is taken.
“They are not creatures to be owned. They are not party favors for the human circus,” stated local urban lepidopterist O’Brien said to the SF Examiner. “We all know the exultation of a butterfly release. But it’s really a hellacious relationship to nature.”
According to the SF Examiner, the North American Butterfly Association and the Bay Area’s Bay Nature Institute both support the ban.
San Francisco has become renowned for its extensive and sometimes ludicrous citywide bans, including toys in Happy Meals, soda in vending machines on city property, cat declawing and Styrofoam containers.
Read the full article at the SF Examiner.