Social butterfly

The wedding industry is a fairly zany one, as couples go to all kinds of lengths to make their special day have that special edge. But the latest trend - that of releasing butterflies - we decided was in a league of its own in terms of novelty. The creatures, seen as romantic and pretty, have become popular in China recently. Lifestyle decided to find out more information on this industry.

Butterfly releasing at a wedding has been noted in some Western countries in the past, but has only come to China recently. Type the keywords "butterfly" and "wedding ceremony" into a search engine and you will see thousands of companies and individuals doing this. One considered sophisticated in the field is Beijing's Diezhilian Butterfly Company, which has been around for seven years approximately. Chen Minhui, the person in charge of this business, said that the idea originated in the West.

"It was not easy. In the beginning we could not even sell 100 butterflies a month because the idea was still beyond people's imagination here," he said. "But now this number is around 200,000, costing 10 yuan ($1.6) to 15 yuan for each, depending on the size." Chen is expecting to sell 400,000 butterflies this year and his company has grown from stocking just a few types of butterflies to hundreds. "The types of butterflies are different each season," he said. "There are about 10 types each month. June and July often have more due to the warm weather."

However, while they might look pretty, the business can be anything but. The life expectancy of each butterfly is between five to 10 days. Transporting them successfully to the spot in time is challenging. "Transporting them involves a long procedure," Li said.

The most difficult part of the business is how to keep the butterflies alive during transportation. This could partially explain why the prices are high. Each butterfly is packaged separately in a container, which is also placed in a box. "The boxes are well-ventilated and pressure-resistant," he said. In order to ensure the stable temperature in the box, an electric incubator is placed inside to keep the butterflies alive.

Then there are occasions when the butterflies do not fly after the box is opened, which can be pretty embarrassing during the ceremony. But Li has come up with tactics to ensure this is rare. "The butterfly does not like to move if the temperature is below 25 degrees. So long as the box is around this level it will be fine," Li explained.

To buy butterflies, people need to book 13 days in advance, since they are not available all the time. "We need to breed the exact number you order," he said. The speed of artificial breeding can be accelerated by changing various factors, but this can be detrimental to quality.

Xiao Xiao, a wedding planner from the Beijing-based Xibaolai Company, said that butterfly releasing during a wedding ceremony is not free from controversy. "Some people are against celebrating their special day in this way because the butterflies soon die and death is never a good sign for couples." Xiao said that most young couples prefer to release colorful balloons instead of butterflies, which is cheaper too.

26-year-old bride to be Wang Yue definitely frowns upon the idea. "I never knew you could release butterflies in your wedding ceremony," she said. "But I really have no intention to do that in my future wedding. For one thing, the price is too expensive and for another the idea of releasing butterflies sounds very tacky," she explained.

Like Wang, 28-year-old Liu Yanli had never heard about this service. Unlike Wang, she loves the idea. "It is quite romantic to have hundreds of butterflies suddenly rise up in front of you," said Wang, who will wed later this year. For Liu the butterflies could represent a blessing. Yet Liu also has her own concerns. "If I only buy a few butterflies then it is meaningless, but if I buy 100 or more, then the prices are prohibitively high," she said.