The Dangerous World of Butterflies: The Startling Subculture of Criminals, Collectors, and Conservationists by Peter LauferMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
You're thinking, "Butterflies? Really?" I was right there with you when I first heard Peter Laufer talking about his book on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. But I was intrigued, and when a friend gifted me a copy of the book, I couldn't wait to get into it. I'm glad I didn't put it off because Dangerous describes this world to a tee. Right from the start you're immersed in the world of butterflies - not stuff of cliche, but truly fascinating facts drawn from this very bizarre world. You'll learn things like how some female butterflies are fertilized before they've even hatched (pupal rape, ewww) and how there's this whole feud between butterfly breeders (you can breed butterflies?) and butterfly enthusiasts whose only goal anymore is to see and maybe photograph butterflies - netting and pinning is so passe. There's this dark and dangerous world of butterfly smuggling where certain species can bring you thousands of dollars for a single specimen . . . and several years in jail when you're caught. Finally there are the scientists who devote hours and hours tending larva and supergluing chrysalises to the undersides of leaves only to have to schedule and carry out these black ops-type releases of endangered species so that butterfly hunters don't descend on the release sites and net all the carefully raised butterflies.
It's exhausting, but oh, what a ride.
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