🏝️Marl Insects and Butterfly Culture

Marl Insects and Butterfly Culture is a working butterfly farm and visitor garden on Cawit Pier Road in Brgy. Amoingon, Boac — and per the simpol.ph "Wings of Change" feature, it's the first and largest butterfly farm in Marinduque. The farm was founded by Leodegario Layron when he was just 15 years old and is run today by Leodegario and his wife Cheryl Layron. From the road you'd almost miss it: simpol describes it as a quiet sanctuary marked only by "a framed tarpaulin sign by the roadside." Step through the gate and you're inside a netted garden where Marinduque's national-icon insect — the bila-bila, as Cheryl uses the local Marinduqueño word — flies free among red Pagoda Flowers and butterfly host plants.

What it is

Two parts, on one site:

- A walk-through butterfly garden under a mesh-net enclosure, where rare and ordinary species fly freely — the Paper Kite (Idea leuconoe), the Birdwing, and the Atlas Moth among them. - A small indoor display + souvenir shop with framed mounted specimens, butterfly-themed clocks and gifts, and (for the right paperwork) live butterfly pupae you can take home. The Pusomoto interpretive panel on-site puts it plainly: "Butterfly farms offer a captivating glimpse into the butterfly life cycle, showcasing larvae, pupae, and diverse butterfly species fluttering freely in enclosures. Visitors can also purchase butterfly-themed souvenirs."

Why this farm matters beyond the garden

From the simpol.ph feature, attributed to Cheryl Layron: "70% to 80% of the butterfly pupae exported abroad come from their farm. They release another 10% into the wild to help support local ecosystems." Their butterflies fly to clients across the U.S., France, the U.K., the Netherlands, and New Zealand. So your 80–100-peso entrance fee buys you a literal close-up of the supply chain that puts Marinduque butterflies onto international stages — including the local Bila-Bila Festival the province now celebrates every May.

What Visitors Say

Eight Google ratings averaging ★4.8 — small sample, consistent reception. Quoted real reviews:

From the most detailed (April 2026), "Felicity": "Decided to drop by this butterfly farm and even though it was a short visit, we loved it. Che took us through the establishment and answered all our questions, and satisfied our curiosity about butterflies and exporting them outside the Philippines… I also liked how they were passionate about the butterflies and the work they do… Admission is 80PHP and well worth it!" — "Che" is Cheryl, the operator herself.

From January 2026, "YouTube: Go With Shane": "A quick visit here is absolutely worth it! You'll learn fascinating facts — like how Mariposa butterflies (Atlas Moths) don't even have mouths as adults. The 100 PHP entrance fee is well-priced for the educational value provided. The owner and staff are incredibly friendly and knowledgeable, making the experience both fun and informative. It's also impressive to learn that they export larvae globally, contributing to the international butterfly industry. This is a fantastic spot for photography, so bring your camera to capture these beautiful creatures up close. A true hidden gem in Marinduque!"

Maurizio Grandoni (March 2024): "Must visit. Informative, family friendly, great pics and many different varieties of Butterflies." Ma. Alodia Marges-Quinto (May 2025) summed up the visit in one line: "A place where I can appreciate and experience the beauty and essence of a butterfly."

Two notes from those reviews worth knowing in advance: (1) the entrance fee has been quoted as 80–100 PHP across visits in the past year — confirm the current rate at the gate; (2) the visit is shorter than the average attraction (most reviewers describe it as "quick" or "short"). Plan it as part of a Boac itinerary, not as a standalone day trip.

What to Know Before You Go

Hours per Google: 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM, every day of the week. Phone: +63 42 754 5380 (a Quezon-area landline — good for confirming a visit, especially if you're arriving with a group or want a guided walk-through with Cheryl). The property is regulated under the Department of Environment and Natural Resources — its Wildlife Culture Permit (WCP) and Wildlife Farm Permit (WFP) both carry the reference MIMAROPA-2020-05 (visible on the welcome sign), which is the legal frame for keeping and exporting the species you'll see.

If you want to take pupae or specimens home, ask at the shop — international export is paperwork-heavy, and casual cross-border carry-on of live insects is not legal in most destinations. The on-site shop handles domestic souvenir sales (framed mounts, butterfly-themed clocks, prints) which travel back to most Philippine cities without issue.

Where It Sits

Marl Insects is in Brgy. Amoingon along Cawit Pier Road, on the Boac side of the western coast. Pair it with the Boac Cathedral (Our Lady of Immaculate Conception) and the Boac Heritage District in the Poblacion for a full Boac morning, or with Tres Reyes Islands viewpoints if you're heading toward Gasan after. The Discover Marinduke YouTube channel has a brief on-site walk-through tour titled "Marl Insects and Butterfly Garden, Brgy. Amoingon, Boac, Marinduque" — useful for setting expectations on the size and shape of the visit before you go.

Booking and Contact

- Phone: +63 42 754 5380 (landline; published on Google) - Hours: 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM, daily (per Google) - Address: Cawit Pier Road, Brgy. Amoingon, Boac, Marinduque - Coordinates: 13.4026° N, 121.8263° E - Facebook: facebook.com/marlsbutterfly — listed as the property's website on Google - Entrance fee: 80–100 PHP (per recent visitor reviews; confirm at the gate) - Permits on file: WCP & WFP, both MIMAROPA-2020-05

Why to Consider

If your trip already has Boac on it — and most do, since the Cathedral and the Holy Week Moriones procession anchor the town — Marl Insects is a 30-to-60-minute side trip that will measurably change how you understand Marinduque. The province's relationship with butterflies is not casual; it's a working export industry that ties Boac and Gasan to gardens in Europe, the Americas, and New Zealand, and Marl is where that story is most clearly visible to visitors. You see the butterflies. You see the breeding plants. You hear from Cheryl, the operator herself. You walk away with a souvenir if you want one. And the ★4.8 across the eight reviewers who've taken the time to leave one suggests almost everyone who goes thinks the small entrance fee was the right call.