The Valley of the Butterflies
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The jewel of Paros can be found just 7 kilometers from Parikia, near the monastery of Agios Arsenios, and is never experienced by the hordes of tourists that visit the island in August. The Valley of the Butterflies, a unique natural site on Paros, with dense vegetation: cypress trees, ivy covered plane trees, wild olive and other fruit trees and a natural well.
This environment comprises a rare biotope for Jersey Tiger Moth butterflies, which can be seen perched in large numbers on the tree trunks. The butterflies of Paros are known for their wonderful coloring (brown-black with yellowish extremities and bright red wings) and appear from late May to late July, disappear in August and reappear in September. The disappearance is due to the females seeking places to lay their eggs and die. The caterpillars emerge from the eggs in October and transform into butterflies in May. They sit upon the tree trunks from June to August, and mate in August, continuing the cycle of rebirth.
A small admittance fee is charged at the entrance of the valley, and visitors are advised to keep as quiet as possible so as not to startle the beautiful inhabitants of the forest and force them to consume the energy that they require to complete their mission.
