Maharashtra's New State Butterfly Begs The Question: How Are Our National Symbols Selected In First Place?

By Aarefa Johari in Mumbai

Some of our national animals were chosen because they are endangered. Some because they are abundant and popular. Who decides and how?

Last week, the Maharashtra government announced a new symbol of patriotism for the state: the Blue Mormon, a tiny winged insect that is to serve as the official “state butterfly”.

The decision was taken on June 22 at a meeting of the Maharashtra State Wildlife Board, a body governed by the state’s forest ministry. But this was only a formal decision – informally, the manuals of the Maharashtra State Biodiversity Board had already been promoting the Blue Mormon as the state butterfly since 2013.

This is seemingly the first time any Indian state has hand-picked a specific species to add to its list of representative symbols from nature – most states typically stick to a state animal, bird, tree and flower. (For Maharashtra, those would be the Indian giant squirrel, the green pigeon, the mango tree and the jarul flower.)

The Blue Mormon, a black-winged butterfly with blue spots, is neither endangered nor threatened, and is found in considerable numbers in the Western Ghats and parts of Vidarbha. So why did Maharashtra choose to honour this creature with a special status of its own, instead of according it a broader title like, say, “state insect”? Is there a method or a set of guidelines that governments adhere to?

Spot the pattern
If one goes by the trends at the national level, the process of selecting patriotic symbols appears to be rather arbitrary.

The tiger was chosen as India’s national animal in 1972 because the state realised the need to promote the conservation of the rapidly disappearing endangered species. The Asiatic lion had been the national animal for 20 years before that, but it was dethroned by the central wildlife board because the tiger’s new status had to be timed with the launch of the nation-wide Project Tiger campaign to save the striped cat. In 2005, the forest minister created the centre-funded National Tiger Conservation Authority to manage Project Tiger.

More recently, in 2009, the National Ganga River Basin Authority under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made the Gangetic or river dolphin India’s “national aquatic animal”, creating a new category specially to draw attention to the rare species and save it from extinction.

A year later, yet another category was created for elephants – since “national animal” was already taken, jumbos were given the more glowing title of “national heritage animal”. The name was a nod to the strong religious and cultural significance elephants have had in India for centuries, and the aim of the new category was to protect the animals from poaching and encroachments on their habitats. (The government’s plans to set up a National Elephant Conservation Authority on the lines of the NTCA have, however, not taken off.)

In contrast to all of these, India’s national bird has nothing to do with conservation or protection from any threats. The Indian peafowl (of which the peacock is the male) is not an endangered species at all, and was chosen for its sheer visual appeal and the fact that it is native to the subcontinent.

In fact, when the national bird was being selected in the 1950s, one of the strongest contenders was the Great Indian Bustard, a critically endangered species that is also native to the subcontinent. “But one of the reasons it wasn’t eventually selected was that its name could be mispronounced,” said Ravi Chellam, a senior wildlife conservationist.

Is it charismatic enough?
In India, there is no written procedure for the selection of national symbols, but in the case of flora and fauna, the decision is usually made by the National Wildlife Board after a proposal comes from the environment and forest ministry. At the state level, the forest departments and state wildlife boards take charge.

Selections in individual categories may seem arbitrary, but they do have some broad bases, say experts.

“I think the main requirement is that a species should have some flagship value, some popular appeal,” said K Ramesh, a scientist at the Wildlife Institute of India. “It should also be endemic or unique to India and have a wide distribution within the country.”

In the eyes of the Indian public, the lion, tiger and peacock are all charismatic creatures, while the elephant has a cultural appeal. (The national tree – the banyan – is also a flagship species for India.) While all of these animals are endemic to the Indian subcontinent, the tiger beats the lion when it comes to widespread distribution – the habitat of the Asiatic lion is restricted to the Gir forests of Gujarat, while tigers can be found in national parks across the country.

“The main purpose of all this symbolism is to instil a sense of pride in the natural wealth of the country and to draw attention to different species,” said Chellam.

A way to spark curiosity
In Maharashtra, the Blue Mormon may not have been an instantly recognisable butterfly amongst ordinary citizens, but the state government hopes that its new status will increase its charismatic appeal.

“We chose the Blue Mormon because it is an important indicator of rich biodiversity in the places where it is found,” said Dilip Singh, member-secretary of the Maharashtra State Biodiversity Board.

By creating a separate category of “state butterfly”, the forest department also wants to draw attention to the fact that Maharashtra’s 225 varieties of butterflies account for a good 15% of the national butterfly population.

“This new state symbol is going to make people curious, so it will help raise awareness about the need to conserve our biodiversity,” said Singh.