Flora
East New Britain Province has rich volcanic soil in which many evergreen tropical plants grow with bright colorful flowers. The varieties of plants which grow in East New Britain include Frangipani [Plumeria].
Frangipani which has different colors was the first plant to flower after the 1937 volcanic eruptions. Other colorful flowering plants that also grow in East New Britain are crotons, bougainvillea, hibiscus, poinsettia, flame trees, African tulip and rain trees.
These plants have beautiful flowers which have nice perfume that attracts butterflies and insects.
FAUNA
There are different type of bird species in East New Britain Province which include the;
- Cockatoos
- Parrots
- Hornbills
- Hawks
- Falcons
- Kingfishers
- Eagles
- Megapodes
Anyone interested in bird watching should come and watch the birds in Sikut and Warongoi areas. If you are interested in watching megapodes birds which lay megapodes eggs then you can watch them at the Matupit Island. The Villagers of the Valaur and Tavana in Matupit Island sources good money from these megapodes eggs which are edible and a local delicacy.
BUTTERFLY WATCHING
There are many butterflies flying around plants that have bright flowers with nice fragrance which the butterflies feed on during bright sunny days in East New Britain. The most common butterfly you will see in East New Britain is called the Lycaenids or “Blues” because of its bright blue color.
Butterfly watchers will also have opportunities to see and take photographs of “Ulysses” butterfly as well as one of the famous ‘Birdwing’ butterflies whose wingspan ranges from 200 to 250 mm which can be found in the Gazelle Peninsula.
A rare Birdwing called Ornithoptera Primus Miokoensis is only found on Mioko Island in the Duke of York Island group.
Many butterflies can be seen at the OISCA Botanical Garden near Warongoi River. The OISCA botanical garden is a 30 minutes drive away from Kokopo and can be reached by a car or bus on sealed road. Another butterfly farm where you can also see some more butterflies is located at Sikut- Matupit which is about one hour’s drive from Kokopo.