Lutherstadt Wittenberg (dpa/sa) - Shortly after the seasonal closure of the Alaris butterfly park in Lutherstadt Wittenberg, around 500 fluttering animals moved to the Netherlands. They would now spend their twilight years in the Wildlands Erlebnis Zoo in Emmen, park manager Georg Liebold told the German Press Agency on Wednesday. He drove the butterflies of different species to the neighboring country himself and also used the visit for an exchange. "We've been doing it this way for 24 years," he said.

According to Liebold, the butterflies would first be "picked" or trapped at known feeding points. The transport takes place in previously cooled Styrofoam boxes. "They freeze in it and only flutter about again when it's nice and warm all around."

The past season in the Wittenberg Butterfly Park came to an end on Sunday - it will continue on April 1, 2023. According to Liebold, around 40,000 visitors were counted. When the park reopens in spring, new butterflies move in. According to their own statements, around two thirds come from their own breeding. According to its own statements, the Wittenberg Butterfly House is one of the few zoos in Germany that is privately run.