Matthew Mcgrath – A large monarch butterfly flits by as Ralph Petrellese breaks through the barrier of heavy, transparent plastic drapes that mark the entrance to his butterfly sanctuary.
His presence in the 900-square-foot Mantoloking Road greenhouse, home to about 100 butterflies, is somewhat incongruous. He’s a tall, solidly built man with a thick layer of stubble around his thick black mustache. He has spent nearly a year learning about the gentle insects and how to care for them.
“I saw an exhibit at Hersey Park last summer, which is when I got the idea,” Petrellese said. “They had a smaller greenhouse, and they charged a lot more money.”
The sanctuary is on the Brick Flower Shop’s side lot. Petrellese runs the florist with his wife, Nancy. The township couple has owned the floral shop for three years. The two previously had rented the lot and the greenhouse to landscapers. They owned a florist shop in Freehold for 15 years before they bought the store here. The sanctuary, however, is a separate nonprofit company.
For a $10 donation to Butterfly Charities, visitors can spend all the time they want in the sanctuary. Brides-to-be can purchase a dozen butterflies for $150 to be released as an alternative to rice or birdseed. Butterfly Charities will donate its profits to a different charity each month — June is breast cancer research, July will be Camp Quality.
The dark clouds blotting out the sun Wednesday kept the orange and black monarchs subdued, Petrellese said. They sat on the flowers “nectaring,” that is, drinking the nectar from the flowers. In the background, “Pachelbel’s Canon,” composed by Johan Sebastian Bach, played from a small digital music player on a continuous loop.
At a closer inspection, hundreds of caterpillars of all sizes pocked the leaves of the plants. Soon, many of them will wrap themselves in cocoons and emerge completely changed — monarchs, morning cloaks and painted ladies will glide through the greenhouse. The females in the bunch will lay 500 eggs each during their four-week adult life, which will guarantee the sanctuary a constant supply of butterflies.
“I helped one butterfly out of his cocoon,” Nancy Petrellese said. “It pumped up its wings, flew and landed on my hand as a thank-you, I guess. Then it flew off.”
Escapes do happen, which is why Petrellese stocks only insects that are native to New Jersey. But, the three butterflies that have escaped were caught within a half-hour and returned to the sanctuary.
“This is a Club Med for butterflies,” Petrellese said. “This is all they’ve known. There is lots of food, plenty of mates. It’s harder outside for them.”