The Paris Area Chamber of Commerce hosted the 17th Annual Mt. Magazine International Butterfly Festival Friday (June 21) and Saturday (June 22) with various activities taking place at the Logan County Fairground and Mt. Magazine State Park.
Event organizer Linda Hixson said the festival began with the discovery of the Diana Fritillary, Arkansas' state butterfly that breeds on Mt. Magazine.
The butterflies were released into the conservatory Saturday by the Butterfly Miss Pageant winners.
"What I like about the butterflies is they are so colorful and pretty," said pageant winner Payton Scantling, 5.
At the conclusion of the festival, the nearly 120 butterflies on display in the conservatory will be released into the wild, according to Hixson. She said hundreds of thousands of Monarch butterflies were killed during a freeze in Mexico a few years ago.
"Scientists have said it would take 20 years for them to repopulate so this is one of the ways we have of helping them repopulate," said Hixson.
She said butterflies play an important role in pollination.
"Without the bees and the butterflies and those pollinator insects, we would not have vegetables, we would not have fruit, we would not have food to eat."
The festival also offered horse and camel rides, food, arts and crafts, and a rock climbing wall. People in the community said the festival is a good event for the whole family.
"It gives you a chance to to look at all the different vendors," said Terra Akers from Paris who attended the festival with her three sons. "It's a really nice thing for the community."