Bookable
An Apollonaut travel guide
Moments in a longer story.
Selected milestones in the history of the Australian Butterfly Sanctuary.
On this page
Village, laboratory and aviary
These dates describe the place you can learn about here. They are not a company timeline for Apollonaut.
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1891
The railway arrives
The line from Cairns reaches Kuranda, bringing the first visitors up the range.
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1987
The sanctuary opens
Paul and Sue Wright open the sanctuary they designed and built.
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1989
A record
By the sanctuary’s account, it sets a Guinness World Record as the largest butterfly farm in the world.
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2004
New partners
The CaPTA Group becomes an equal partner.
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2005
Windows on the laboratory
The breeding laboratory opens to visitors, with viewing windows.
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2007
Full ownership
The CaPTA Group takes full ownership.
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2015
New gardens
A bridge and gazebo, a fairy garden and a food plant walk are added.
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2023
A new ramp
A new wheelchair ramp is installed.
Follow the stories behind the dates
A timeline is a beginning. The longer history introduces the people and places; the sources below provide further context.
Read at the source
Sources & further reading
- Australian Butterfly Sanctuary: About
- Wikipedia: Australian Butterfly Sanctuary
- Wikipedia: Kuranda, Queensland
Links lead to the original publishers.